Till'; AI'THOR.
l-'rom II I'huto ly T Wood, Melhniirnc.

NESTS AND EGGS

OF

AUSTRALIAN BIRDS

INCLUDING THE

GEOGRAPHICAL DISTEIBUTION OF THE SPECIES

AND C ^ ^

POPULAR OBSERVATIONS THEREON

BY

ARCHIBALD JAMES CAMPBELL

MELBOURNE

With Map, 28 Coloured Plates and 131 Photographic Illustratio'ns

PART II.

Printed for the Author

BY

PAWSON & BRAILSFOED, SHEFFIELD
1901.

(ALL RIGHTS RESERVED)

tHA >*

NESTS AIVD EGGS OF AUSTRALIA IV BIRDS.

FAMILY— PITTID^ : ANT THRUSHES.

525

419. — Pitta strepitans, Tcmminck. — (269)
PITTA.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. iv., pi. i.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xiv., p. 428.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. i., p. 431 (1865); Ramsay: Ibis, p. 417 with pi.

{1867); North: .\ustn. Mus. Cat., pi. ii, fig. 7 (1SS9).

Geogrnjihical Di.'itrihutiun. — Queensland and New South Wales.

Next. — Covered or dome - shaped, side entrance with stage - like
approach; composed of sticks, dead leaves, skeleton portions of stag-
liorn ( Platyccrium) fronds and chiefly moss, small pieces of decayed
wood being placed round the entrance ; situated on or near the ground,
usually between the spurs of fig or otlier tree, sometimes protected by
a rock, in dense scrub. Dimensions over all, 8 to 9 inches across by
11 J inches in height; inside cavity, 5i to 6 inches in diameter;
entrance 3 to 3i inches across ; length of staging 6 inches.

Egcjs. — Clutch, three to four, rarely five ; roundish in shape, slightly
more compressed at one end ; texture of shell somewhat fine ; surface
glossy ; colour, pearly-white, spotted and blotched, sometimes iiTegularly
splashed with dark-brown, chestnut, and purplish-grey. Dimensions
in inches of a perfect pair from the Richmond River district :
(1) 1-31 X -99, (2) 1-3 X -97.

A full set of four has one example (No. 4) almost white, save a
few speckles on the smaller end. There is usuallv one light-coloured
egg in a clutch: (1) 1-27 x 1-01, (2) 1-26 xl"o, (3) 1-2") x 1-01,
(4)'l-22xl-03, (Plate 16.)

Observations. — This handsomely coloured bird of tlirush-Iike habits
is essentially a dweller of the luxuriant coastal scrubs from the northern
part of New South Wales up to the Cardwell district, Queensland.

Dr. Ramsay mentions a single specimen was shot near Wollongong,
south of Sydney, 1883.

Mr. F. Sti'ange, who first obtained the eggs of the Pitta, sent them
to Gould with the following note : — " I never saw any bird whose
actions are more graceful than those of the Pitta strepitans, when seen
in its native brushes, where its presence is indicated by the singular
call, resembling the words ' want a watch,' by imitating which you can
bring it close to the muzzle of yotir gun. No sooner, however, does it
commence breeding, than it becomes shy and retiring, keeping out of
sight in the most artful manner, nio\'ing about from place to place,
and occasionally uttering its cry, until it has drawn you away from
the nest."

526

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BTRDS.

In the Big Sciiib, Richmond River district, one frequently hears the
strong, whistle-like " want a watch ' call of the I'itta, the " watch "
being sounded a third or fourth liighcr than the other two notes.

I only succeeded in finding two empty nests, at least my companion,
who had seen Pittas' nests, said they belonged to this bird. One was'
a half-open structure composed of moss and leaves, backed up against
an outcrop of rocks.

The examples of Pitt«'s eggs in my collection were found in the
Big Scnib by Mr. J. C. Gordon, December, 1891. Tliere were three
fresh eggs in the nest. He wrote: — "The nest was built in the spur
of a buoyong tree, .and was composed on the outside, first of coai-se
sticks, then moss mixed with dust and decaying logs, and lastly fcnis ;
inside, grass, no feathers. The nest was open at Oie side."

I subscciuently received a full clutch from Mr. H. R. Elvery. who
has been singularly successful in finding Pittas' ncst.s in the Big Scrub.
In November, 1897, he took a " record'' clutch of five eggs.

From Mr. Hermann Lau's MS., regarding the Pitta, I take: —
■' Dragoon Bird. During my stay at Bunya Mountains (South Queens-
laud), ninety miles north-east from Yandilla, I was in tlie habit of
imitating the short whistle of this bird to bring it within gimshot. On
one occasion my desired friend would not come to me, but kept a
respectable distance, so I approached it, sighted and despatched it. On
picking up the body, to my great dismay, I discovered pieces of egg
shell around the abdomen (the shot had been too severe). Looking
round I beheld, only a yard dist;int. a beautiful nest between large
stones mixed up with earth. Unfortunately there was no egg in it.
Tiie bird was evidently about to lay her first egg, which had been
smashed. On dissecting the body I found three more eggs witliout
shells. Tliis brought me to the conclusion tliat the Pitta lays four
eggs, roundish, in size like a Landrail's, in colour light-creamy with
middle-sized brown-red .spots.

" The nest was shaped like a mortar, and made of fenis and moss.
Entrance at side. November, 1883. "

Breeding months Jire probably November, December and .Tanuaiy.

420. PiTT.\ STitr.PlTANS (sub-speciesl siMii.i.iM,\. Oould.

LESSER PITTA.

Jfeferrnre.—Vroc. Zool. Soc, p. ;() (iS68).

I'renious Descriptions of E/jgs. — Ramsav : I'mc. Zool. Soc, p. i;oi
(1875); North: Austn. Miis. Cat.', pi. 11, fig. 8 (1880).

Grngrnphirnl Dintrihutinn. — North Queensland ; also New Guinea

Next. — Similar in description and situation to that of /'. xfrrpifnns.

E(/(/s. — Clutch, three to four; round oval in sliape ; texture of shell
fine ; surface glossy ; colour, pcarly-whitc or wliite with a slight

NESTS A\'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 527

yellowish tone, spotted and irregiilarly splashed all over with chestnut,
also spotted with roundish niarlungs of dull grey. Dimensions in inches
of a pair from the Bloomfield River district : (1 ) MS x -95, (2) M6 x -95 ;
of a beautiful set from Cape York, riclily marked with short, wavy
blotches and lines of piu'plish-red and grey : (1) M9 x -91, (2) 1-19 x -91,
(3) 1-18 X -92. These eggs are much more marked and decidedly
smaller than those of the southern variety.

Oljacrt'atiiiiu. — Dr. Ramsay writes : — " This northern variety of
Pitta xtrejjitdiiK I found common enough at the Herbert River and
scrubs near Cardwell. .Some of the specimens are deeper coloured and
smaller even than any I have seen from (Jape York ; others again arc
not distinguishable from the New South Wales Birds : the white spot
on the wing is almost obsolete in many from the ranges near Cardwell.
Their notes are exactly the same in all localities. The nests and eggs
are the same, and are found to vary in the same way as those dcsciibcd
and iigured by me in the 'Ibis,' 1867, p. 417.

" One thing is certain, I never knew a- nest of either P. strejiitans
or P. simillima to contain more than three eggs ahke, and often two
out of the four (the usual number laid for a sitting) have been of a
finely-spotted and light-coloured variety, the other two strongly and
deeply marked."

Dr. Sclater's testimony in the " Catalogue " is to the effect that " the
northern specimens (P. ><imUlima ) are smaller in pize, but not othei^wise
distinguishable from P. atrepitaiia, and there are several specimens in
,1 series of intermediate dimensions, wluch it is difficult to as.sign to
either form without knowing the locality.

As a field observer and collector, Mr. K. Broadbent evidently
beUeves in the two species of Pittas, for he states: — " SimiUima is
found in all the hill scnibs as far as Cape York. The nest is built at
the roots of a large tree, and is made in the shape of a dome nine
inches high with a diameter in pi'oportion. It is composed of decaying
leaves, palm-fibre, and twigs loosely put together, ingi-ess being obtained
at the front. Roughly speaking, I should say P. t^imillima extends as
far south as Halifax Bay. P. strejiifans reaches as far north as Rocking-
ham Bay. The extent of counti'y in which they both exist is therefore
about fifty miles."

The following is a field note by Mr. W. B. Barnard when in the
Bloomfield River district, 1893 : — " Pitta, or Dragoon Bird. Found two
nests, one with two eggs, the other with four. Nest on gi'ound between
two projectmg roots, made of fan-palm fibre, dead leaves, small sticks,
&c. Resembles a bandicoot's nest, the hole being in the .side. First
nest found 5th December, second on 20th. '

528 IVESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

421. — Pitta macki.oti, Temminck.
BLUE-BREASTED PITTA.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., supp., pi. 29.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xiv., p. 436.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., supp.
(i86g); North: Austn. .Mus. Cat., p. 174, pi. 11. fig. 9 (1889).

Geoffrajiliical Distrilution. — North Queensland; also New Guinea,

New Britain. Am Islands, Mvsol. Sahvatti. and Waiijiou

Next. — A locse structure of intcrhu'od gra.sses and fine fibre.s. In
one instance it w.as placed on the liead of a stump aliout six or seven
inches from the ground. (Gould.)

Eijd'i. — Clutch, three to four; roundish in foini ; texture of
shell fine ; surface glos.sy ; colour, lightish cream or pale crcamy-bulT,
lightly blotched and splashed all over with dull-purple and a few darker
spots of olive. Dimensions in inches of a clutch: (1) 112x-86.
(2) Mix -88, (3) MxS6. The,se eggs, besides being .smaller thaji
those of itimillima, have their markings more i>!otch((l or of a cloudy
nature. (Mr. T. A. Brittlebank's collection.)

Olixtrratirmx. — Referring to the riehly-coloured Macklot or Blue-
breasted Pitta, Gould states: — "I possess undoubted examples as well
as j-oung birds, from the neighbourhood of Somerset, in the Cape York
district, where thej' were collected liy Mr. James Cockereil, who informs
me that although not common it is sufficiently abundant there to render
the obtaining of examples a matter of no great difficulty. It inhabits
thick vine scrubs, based with stones and overriui with rank herbage of
various kinds. Its mournful whistle, which is most frecjucntly uttered
near sundown, is veiy deceptive, appearing to come from the oppo.site
direction in which the bird is stationed ; it is, in fact, a perfect ven-
triloquist. It sometimes leaves the ground, and may occasionally be
seen perched on the tops of the highest trees, where it sits very close."

According to Mr. Cockcrcll's observations, the Macklot Pitta
appciired to be a partial migrant to Cape York, where it arrives in
October and November, departing again in .Taminrv atid Fcbniarw
presum.ibly for New Guinea.

Mr. K. Bioadbcnt's observations are: — " /'i//ii miirklnti (Macklot's
Pitta), the most handsome of the genus, is rather scarce. I noted it at
Herbert Gorge in a hill scrub. It is plentiful at ('ape York in summer,
and I have procured specimens from the Goldie River, British New
Guinea. It occurs on adjaeent i,slands between these latter places, and
is of interest as being one of the numerous links conned ing the
North Queensland and Pa|nian faunas. The call of the M.icklot's
Pitta is rather mournftil, somewhat resembling that of a Pigeon. The
bird is of retiring and solitary habits Its main food — and indeed that
of .il! the Pittas — consisto of comiiion ^ii.iiis ( llrUriilir ) ami of wonns.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AV ST K A LJ A N B7KVS.

529

To obtain the snail wh™ it has retired into its shell, the Pitta has
recourse to a stone. Holding the shell in its bcakj the bird breaks it
by repeatedly striking the delicate organism on the stone. I have often
observed them thus breaking the shells in the Cardwell scrubs. In
places little heaps of the broken molluscs may be seen lying on and
around a stone that has evidently been especially suitable or con-
venient for their purpose. And I may here say, for the infonnation of
conchologists, that complete specimens of these land shells were very
difficult to meet with about the Cardwell district diuing my stay there.
P. macl-hiti builds its nest the same way as ximiHinin. and the eggs
laid are also equal in number."

I have seen several skins of the handsome Blue-breasted Pitta from
Cape York, collected there by Mr. Harry Barnard, but he appears to
have been unable to procure their eggs, notwithstanding he was there
the whole of their breeding months, one season (1896-7).

422.— PiTT.\ mis. Oould.— (270)
RAINBOW PITTA.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. iv., pi. 3.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xiv., p. 444.

Geogrii [ihiriil Diafrihntinu. — North-west Australia and Northern
Territoiy.

Xexf and Eejf/x. — ITndescribed.

Ohservniiiinx. — The rare Rainbow Pitta inhabits the North-west and
Northern Territory. We know nothing of the economv of this beautiful
creature save that it frecments the thick cane-beds near the coast,
through which it rims rapidly, and where tlie boldness and richness of
its plumage render it a most attractive object. The black under surface
makes this bird quite a distinct species which, according to Mr. P. L.
Sclat#r. has no near allies.

34

530

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ORDER PICARI/E.-PICARIAN BIRDS.
Sub-order — Coraciae.

FAMILY— CYPSELID^ : SWIFTS.

SUH-FAMII-Y CypSELIN^.

423. — MicEOPus PACiFicus, Latham. — (52)

WHITE-RUMPED SWIFT.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. ii., p!. ii.
Refcrenfe. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvi., p. 448.

GenfiropliirnI Dixtrihitiiin. — Au.stralia in general and Tasmania
(occa.sional) ; also Japan, China. Mongolia, Burmali, Cachar, Assam, &c.

Nest. — Plaxied on the ledge of a eliff.

Ffff/^. — Clutch, two usually ; oval in shape, while others arc exceed-
ingly elongated and bluntly pointed at the smaller end ; texture of
shell fine ; .siuface has a slight trace of gloss ; colour, pure white.
Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch: (l) 1-01 x -66, (2) lOx'Gj
of a more oval example : -95 x •?.

Ohserrtitioii.^. — The Australian or Wiiite-runipcd Swift may some-
times be .seen united in flocks with the Spine-tailed, the two
species hawking together in our cloudless southern skies. 'Die
Australian Swift has been once recorded for Tasmania. It comci
to Australia from Ea.stcrn Siberia, over Japan, China, Burmah.
&c., returning thither about February. 1 have noted tlieni in
Riverina up to the first week in March. I pos,sess a rarity in the
shape of the egg of an Australian Swift, which wa,s presented
to me by the late Dr. Kiittrr, of Gennany, and wa'^ taken by
Dr. Dybowski in Eastern Siberia. I have since received a projicr clutch
from Mr. Alan Owston. J<vpan, who tells me that when on a yachting
cruise to an island called Ukishima. which is about half-a-milc long,
two hundred feet high, covered with evergreens and bamboo .scnib,
with cliffs all round, and about twenty imles south of Yokohama, he
examined som(> caves on the south side, where he roughly estimated
there must have been not less th.m 2.000 Wliite-rumped SwifiB

iVESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 531

breeding. The White-rumped Swift also breeds in company with the
Spiue-tailed Swift on the ledges of rock under the Kegon Waterfall.

Two seasons in succession Mr. Owston first noticed the retmn of
the Wliite-nmiped S%vifts on the 15th of May — springtime in the north.
But one mid-winter — 26th December, 1897 — he saw more than a dozen
of these birds when he thought they should have been away down south,
perchance enjoying an Australian summer. By a somewhat strange
coincidence, that was about the time of great bush fires, particularly in
Tasmania and also on parts of the mainland, the smoke of which
covered the face of the land and sea for thousands of miles. Could
these Swifts have possibly lost their way and returned to the land of
their nativity?

Sub-family — ChjEturik.iE.

424. — Ch^etura caudacuta, Latham. — (51)
SPINE-TAILED SWIFT.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. ii., pi. 10.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvi., p. 472.

Geograjjliical Disfrihiition. --AustraMa, and Tasmania; also South-
eastern MongoUa, Eastern Siberia, China and Japan. Reported twice
as a straggler to Great Britain.

Nest and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Ohservatiom. — All field observers have noticed the appearance of
Swifts in summer, especially if the weather be hot and sidtry. These
extraordinary birds are well named, for we could imagine none swifter
in flight. Seen against the sky. the long tapering wings give the bird
a crescent-shaped form, with its body like a short .staff stuck into the
centre of the crescent. Thus it cuts the air at a tremendous speed.
Gould states that it is possible for a Swift to be hawking for flies on
the Continent of Australia at one hour, and at the next to be similarly
emploj^ed across the Bass Strait in Tasmania.

The Spine-tailed Swift is more frequently seen than the White-
rimiped, and is one of the largest of its family in the world. The bird
derives its vernacular name from the row of spines that fringe the end
of the feathers of the short tail. Tlie general plumage is brown and
velvety black, with green and pui-plish reflection, relieved by part of
the flanks and imder tail coverts being white. Total length, 1\ inches,
including the tail 2i inches, while the wing is 8i inches, exceeding the
total of the bird by an inch, which is sufiicient to account for the

532

NESTS AXD EGGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

marvellous speed of the owner. The Spine-tailed Swift lives solely
on winged insects. A correspondent, writing from the Lower
Tarwin, graphically depicts some of its habits:- — "Day by day
those birds are my constant companions, now swooping low along
the heather, hawking in wide circles high in air, or cutting and
glancing through the thick smoke of bush fires, I see them at
early dawn, while the heather is yet wot with dew, solitary birds
skimming low along the fields. Once in a while a faint silvei-y twitter
proves that the birds are not devoid of voice. Night closes ; no sound,
save the low breathing moan of the distant sea. Suddenly, ' swsh, whiz,'
past goes a Swift, cutting through the darkness with the speed of a
bullet, showing the wanderer they are with him still." Can it be
possible tliat these restless birds fly ever by day and night till they
return to the land of their nativity in the north ? Tliey have never
been ob.servcd to pcrcli in Australia, as far as my knowledge goes.*

Mr. Alan Owston, Yokohama, informs me that the Spine-tailed
Swift breeds under the Kegon Waterfall, near Nikko, Japan, Tlie
rock under the fall consists of alternate hard and soft layers, making
a series of shelves, and the Swifts breed in the recesses between the
shelves. Tlic outer edges of these shelves or ledges are so rotten that
the}' will not bear the weight of a man, therefore the place is practically
inaccessible.

425. — CoLLocAijA FUANC'K'A. Gmclin.
C. terro' rri/iiur, Ramsay.

GREY-RUMPED SWTFTLET.

Figure. — Gould — Sharpe : Birds of New Guinea, vol. iv., pi. 38.
Reftrtnie. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mii«,, vol. xvi., p. 503.

Gedfira iihirnl Dix/rihii/iiiii r -}ior\hcvn Queens'and ; also Fiji,
Samoa, Friendly and Solomon Islands, Tcrnat'\ Mauritius, and
Bourbon.

*I possess two notes of the other (White-rumped) ."^wift perrhinp. One by
my son, when a student at the Ilorlirnllnral School, Burnley. In a note read
before the Fiild Naturalists' flub, ho stated : " One day in March (iSos) this
bird came and alighted on a path not ten feet from where T was working. It
seemed unable to balance itself on its feet, and after a sernnd or two took its
departure. This particular bird may have been over-fatigued and consequently
dropped behind. Other .Swifts were passing at the time."

The other note is by Dr. \V. Macgillivrav, who writes: "When down at
I'ortland, i,)th February (iSqo), my brother and 1 saw a groat number nf Swifts
(Micropus pacificus). There must have boon thousands Hying over the town
low down. They wore passing for about two hours, and seomod to come along
Ihe coast from the west, and to fly in a north-easterly direction. .\ large
number was passing over Heywood, which is about sixteen miles inland, when
we reached there by train about half-an-hoiir later; and the same evening A
friend of mine — Mr. Jas. Kdgar, of I'ine Ildls, near Marrow — tells me n large
flock took np their quarters for the nighl in a largo gum tree near his house, and
kept up a constant twittering till it was qtiite dark."

jVHSTS and eggs of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 53.

Ne»t. — Small, shallow, saucer-shaped ; composed of some glutinous
substaneo with a few feathers for a lining. Dimeusious over all,
2 to 3 iuehes by \ iuch deep inside.

E<j(jii. — Clutch, two ( S) ; stout oval in form; texture of shell fine;
siu-face gloss}' ; colour, pure white. Dimensions in inches : '68 x -b.

Ohacrvatiuns. — When at Cardwell, Nortlioni Queensland, August,
18S5, my companions and I were greatly interested in the dusky little
forms of this si»eies of Swiftlet that hovered around our camp in dull
weather, their presence usually predicting rain.

Specimens of an Edible-nest Swiftlet were procured on Dunk Island,
Rockingham Bay, by Macgillivray, during the voyage of the
'' Rattlesnake," many years ago, but they were not recognised as an
Australian species imtil Dr. Ramsay discovered them on the mainland
and described them as C. ttrrm- refjina. Dr. Sliarpe says, " after
careful comparisons I have decided on keeping this new Swiftlet distinct
from C. spodiopygia, of Peale, to wliich it bears undoubted affinity.
However, " doctors differ," and Mr. Ernest Hartert, in classifying tliis
family in the Catalogue of Birds, British Museum, vol. xvi., unites
both birds under G. francica.

Dr. Ramsay states : — " Tlus si^ecies inhabits the north-east coast
range near Cardwell, Rockingham Bay, where it is tolei-ably plentiful,
but very difficidt to procure, from its small size and swift fUght. Small
flocks may be seen flying to and fro over the cleared parts of the lower
parts of the coast ranges, and frequently the same troop returns to the
same open ground day after day ; towards evening others may be foiuid
sweeping over the tops of the sciaib and about the ijrceipitous sides
of the rocky ridges, where they doubtless breed. I found several yoimg
and immature-ialumaged bu'ds, and none amongst those I obtained had
the tail fully grown. I have never seen this species in any other part
of Australia than near Rockingham Bay. It was observed in the
neighbourhood of Cardwell during October, and when I left in April,
1874j was still niunerous there."

According to Mr. K. Broadbcut's observations, the Grey-rumped
Swiftlet is common at the base of Bellendeu-Ker and up to l,gl30 feet.
He has seen it catching flies till nearly dark, and then fly towards the
moimtain. He also says it breeds in the rocky gorges of the coastal
range, from Herbei-t River to above Cairas.

It would be well worth any field naturalist's time to explore the
region nam°d and find out for a certainty the nesting caves or quarters
of this interesting little Swift.

426. — CoLLocALiA ESCULENTA, Linuseus.
EDIBLE-NEST SWIFTLET.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvi., p. 509.

Genrjraphical Dixtrihutiuii. — Northern Queensland; also New
Guinea and adjacent islands, Solomon Islands, Celebes, and Moluccas.

-U NESTS AXD EGGS 01- AVSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Ohserrdfioii-^. — It is interesting to be able to include in the Aus-
tralian avifauna this Swiftlet, one of the builders of the long-famed
edible birds' nests of Chinese commerce.

Spealung generally of the genus Volloculia, Air. llartert remarks
that the various species are remarkable for their interesting nests,
which are composed of moss or similar material agglutinated with sahva,
those wholly composed of the latter being the " edible nests. ' These
Swiftlets lay piu'e white eggs — it is believed the number is two, as a
rule — in nests situated in dark caves, where hundreds or rather
thousands are known to breed.

We have read of the famous birds' nest caves at Gomanton, North
Borneo, where, if not the actual Edible-nest Swiftlet, a closely-allied
species assembles in thousands, and when in the evening a most
wonderful sight may be witnessed — columns upon columns of bats
wheeling out, and then a continuous stream of Swiftlets pouring in to
roost — Hawks and Kites taking up positions over the c<ives, and every
now and then swooping down into the living mass, generally securing
victims at each dash, the White-headed Sea Eagle showing a preference
for bats, leaving the Kites to take the Swiftlets. In the morning a
similar scene maj' be observed, only vice versn, the Bats incoming and
the Swiftlets outgoing.

FAMILY— CAPliIMULGlD.<?i : GOAT SUCKERS.

Sub-family — Capiiimulgin.s;.

427. — Capiumiia;us mac1!Uuus, Horsficld. — (50)
LARGE-TAILED NIGHTJAR.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of .Vustralia, fol., vol. ii., pi. y.

KcfcretKe. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvi., p. 537.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — I'roc. Zool. See, p. 5S1 (1875);
Hume : Nests and Kggs Indian Birds (Gates' ed.), vol. iii.,
p. 45 (i8go).

(tfoi/ni iihictil /)l\trl'iiitiiiii.--yioi-i\\wi'fil Australia, Nortiii'rn Terri-
tory, Queensland and New South Wales; also Papuan Islands, Malay
Archipelago, Borneo, Cochin China, Siam, Malay Penin.sula. aiul
Tonasscrim.

Nest. — Simply the bare ground in scrub or forest.

^.'/.'/'•■.- -Clut<h, I wo usually ; elliptical in form; texture fine; surface
glossy; light, pinkish cream colour, f.iiiitiv or obscinily l)lol(lied and
spotted with ptn-plisli brown aiul dull ])urple or slate, the in;ukings being
more numerous about the upper qu.irter. Dimensions in inches of a
clutch : (1) 1-24 X ST, (2) 116 x -85. (Plate 16.)

IVESfS AND EGGS OF ACSf/iAUAX BIRDS. jj^

Observations. — This species of Nightjar particularly possesses an
intertropical habitat, which extends to many extra-Austrahau localities.
Perhaps Dr. Ramsay would kindly cnhghten us as to what proofs ho
has for showing the range of the Large-tailed Nightjar so far south as
Victoria, South Austraha and Western AustraUa.

It is true that Gilbert took the species, but it was most probably on
his trip to Port Essington, where Gould states the birds were
" moderately plentiful." Gilbert also saw a young bird apparently only
a few days old, which he found lying under a shrubby tree without
any nest or even a blade of gi'ass near it. The little creature was so
similar in colour to that of the ground upon which it was lying that it
was with diflicxilty detected, and Gilbert wa.s only induced to search
for it from the peculiar manner in which the old bird rose, the
reluctance it evinced to leave the spot, and its hovering over the place
it had risen from.

Dr. Ramsay wa« indebted to Inspector Robert Johnstone for a pair
of eggs of the Large-tailed Nightjar, which were found on the ground
on the side of a ridge near the Herbert River, Queensland. A little to
the north of the same locahty, ten years subsequently (1885), I had
some experience of this interesting nocturnal species, but did not
succeed in procuring its eggs. I was on a collecting torn-, pleasantly
encamped with Messrs. Alfred and Frank Coles and Arthur Gulhver,
on Meuanger or Saltwater Creek, near Cardwell. We also shot one
flushed from the ground on Hiucliiubrook Island, 17th September.

I received a splendid pair of eggs (the number usually laid, and not
fom- as stated by others) from Mr. D. Le Souef's collection. On liis
return to the coast, after his ascent of Mount Peter Botte, North
Queensland, Mr. Le Souef mentions his jsarty flushed a Lai'ge-tailed
Nightjar from the gi'ound close to the track, whei'e, without a nest of
any kind, the bird was sitting upon two eggs.

The eggs of the Large-tailed Nightjar are sometimes found as early
as August, the breeding season continuing to December or January.

428. — EuKOSTOPUS ALBiGULAius, Vigors and Horsfield. — (48)
WHITE-THROATED NIGHTJAR.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of .Vustralia, fol., vol. ii., pi. 7.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. .xvi., p. 607.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Zool. See, p. 5S1
(1875) ; Campbell : Nests and Eggs Austn. Birds, add. pi. 3,
tig. 48 (1883) ; Ramsay : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales, 2nd
ser., vol. i., p. 1142 (1886); North: Austn. .Mus. Cat., pi. 11,
fig. 3 (1889).

Geagraphiral Di-itrihution. — Queensland, New South Wales, Vic-
toria, and South AustraUa ; also New Guinea.

Nest. — Simply the bare ground in forest country.

cifi NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Ei/<j>!. — Clutch, one ; elliptically inclined iu shape ; textmc fine ;
surface slightly glossy ; rich cream or stone-colour, very sparingly but
boldly marked with roundish blotches and spots of d^irk-pm-plc or
purplish-brown. Dimensions: (I) 1-59 x M4, (2) 1-57 x Ml.

Ohsirriitii/iis. Tills night flier is beautifully spotted, but some-
what larger than the succeeding .sjxicies. Its I'ange is not so extensive,
being restricted chiefly to tlie eastern part of the Continent, where it
loves to dwell, as a rule, in heavily timbered tracts. The first egg of
the White-throated Nightjar' that came into my possession was a fine
specimen taken in the sciiibby countiy adjacent to Lake King,
Victoria. It was taken late in the season (January), and was the one
figured in my manual, " Nests and Eggs." Tlie second one was found
among tlic foot-hills of the Dandeuong Ranges, also in the same State.
Date, 20th October, 1886.

Another in Mr. C. French, junr.'s collection was taken in the last-
named locality as late as 20tli January (1895).

429. — EuROSToPus GUTT.VTUS, Vigor.^ and llorsfield. — (19)
E. argus, Hartert.

SPOTTED NIGHTJAR.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. ii., pi. 8.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvi., p. 6o8.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. i., p. 98 (1865) ; Ramsay : Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 581
(1875); Campbell: Nests and Eggs Australian Birds, pi. 1,
fig. 49 (1883) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., pi. 11, fig. 2 (1S89);
Le Souef : Victorian Naturalist, vol. xvi., p. 61 (1899).

Geographical Diatributiun. — Whole of Australia; also Aru Islands
and New Ireland.

Nest. — Anywhere upon the bare ground or in stony places in open
forest country.

A7///X. — Cliitcii, one; elliptical or round oval iu form; textiue line;
surfiicc glossy ; light-yellowish or light-greenish stone colour, very
sparingly but usually distinctly marked with round blotches and spots
of dark piirplish-l)rnwn ; in some specimens, however, the markings are
duller in colour. Dimensions in inches of examples; (1) 1-39 x TO,
(2) 1-29 x 1-0. (Plate 16.)

OhnervnlinnK. — Wherever there has been a collector in Australia
this beautiful nocturnal bird has been procured and identified.

Although Gould reci'ived undoul)ted eggs of this Spotted Nightjar,
he found none jtersonallv. but records finding a newly-hat4hed young
one on the precise spot from wliiih he flusiied the old bird, lie describes

NESTS AXD EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 53;

the yoiiiig as a helpless little creatme, which much resembled a small
mass of dowu, aud was reddish-brown in colom", not very (.lissimilaa- to
the sui-face of the ground where it had been hatched.

The late Mr. S. White, lieedbeds, near Adelaide, in a communica-
tion to Gould, states : " I have several times found the female sittuig on
the ground on rock witli only a single egg under her; the one sent to
you was placed on a bare piece of stony giound, and the bird was sitting
so close that she allowed me to approach within a few feet of her
without moving."

I have notliing to add, except that my specimens of eggs came from
Coomooboolaroo, where eggs have been found as early as August
(1896), but the usual breeding months are from September to
November.

lu the British Museum Catalogue students will miss for the splendid
Spotted Nightjar the old familiar specific name yuttatus, wliich has
apparently been sunk in favour of the new name arijus, because
Mr. Ernest Hartert has discovered that Vigors and Horsfield's type
specimen was only the young of alhiyularis. Sui'cly there should be
a " Statute of Limitation " in ornithological matters as in other things,
and the old name, ijuttatm, which has stood well nigh a centui'y, might
have remained. Undoubtedly it proves clever research on the part of
Mr. Hartert to have discovered the error, but he could have pointed it
out and still liave adopted the old name (as Dr. Sharpo did when he
deteiTnined the two species of Au.stra.lian Crows). As long as
Australian ornithology lasts I am afraid (juttatu>> will have to stand for
this species.

There is an egg of the Spotted Nightjar from the McDonnell
Ranges, Central Australia, in the collection of Mr. G. A. Keartland,
taken season 18'J4. That keen and enthusiastic field naturalist's notes
concerning this Nightjar, taken dming the Calvert Expechtion (1896) in
the North-west, will be read with interest. Mr. Keartland writes : —
" During the early part of oiu: journey the peculiar note of this bird
gave rise to a considerable amount of speculation as to its origin, but
at Mount Campbell I not only got the required information from the
natives, but also satisfied myself by shooting the bird whilst uttering it.
This note consists of a ' caw, caw, caw, gobble, gobble, gobble.' In the
whole of the desert these birds are seen soon after sunset skimming
over the tops of the spinifex in search of insects, but camp-fires possess
a strong attraction for them in the form of winged insects attracted by
the hght. Whilst on watch on the night of August 17th, I counted
ten birds flying round the burning spinifex at one time. Although
seen far into the desert at night, they prefer rocky country in which
to pass the day. On the hillside, near Mount Campbell, I disturbed
fourteen birds from about half-an-acre of ground, and subsequently
flushed several lots of five or six, but never saw one perch. They
appear to spend all their time on the wing or ground."

338 !^ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

FAMILY— PODARGID^.

Sub-family — Podargin^e.

430. — PoDARGus PAi'UENSis, Quoy and Gaimard. — (45 and 46)
P. 2>!ii'"ifc'"'^, Gould.

PLUMED FROGMOUTH.

Figuri. — Gould : Birds of Australia, ful., vul. 11., pi. 6, and supp.,

pl.3-
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., xvi., p. 630.

Preiious Descriptions of Eggs. — Le Souef : Ibis, p. 312 (iSyb), also
Victorian Naturalist (1896).

Geographical Distribution. — Queensland and New South Wales;
also New Guinea.

Next. — Flat, slightly concave ; constructed of fine sticks or twigs,
brownish coloured at the base, greyish on the top. Usually situated
on horizontal hiulj of a tree in open forest. Diameter, 8 inches by 2i
inches in tliickest part.

Eijijx. — Clutch, one usually; elliptical in sliape ; tc.\ture compara-
tively fine ; surface sliglitly glossy and very faintly pitted ; colour, pure
white. Dimensions in inches of single examples; (1) 1-93 x 1-31,
(2) 1-86 X 1-4.

Observations. — Mr. E. Hartert states: — "Dr. E. P. Kamsay
considers P. plumiferus to be a distinct species; but 1 cannot dis-
tinguish it from P. papuensis, and if I am correct the range of the
latter must be extended to the Richmond River district of New South
Wales."

For the eggs of this species — the largest of Australian Frogmouths —
I am indebted to Mi'. D. Le Souiif, who procured thcni from the Bloom-
field Rivor chstrict of Northern Queensland, and who first described a
nest and egg taken by Mr. R. Hislop 20tli October, 1894.

This bird is mo.st difficult to detect on account of its colour being
so much in harmony witii that of its surroundings. When on the
nest or on a branch it holds its iicad in a line with its l)ody, and ha«
the exact appearance of a piece of dead wood ; even the markings ana
coloiu- of its broad bill arc similar to those of the feathers. They are
fond of sleeping in casuai'inas.

After one of his deligiitful trips to Northern Queensland, Mr. Le
Souef wrote: — "A Papuan Podargiis was found sitting on it.s nest,
which contained one egg, and on dis.section the bird jiroved to be tho
male. The female was roosting in a ncighlioin-jng tree, and wa,s not
cUsturbed by the firing of the gun. We found three nests of the

NESTS AXD EGGS UI- AUSTRALIAN BI/WS.

539

Podargus altogether, built on the hoiizontal branches of the eucalyptus
trees in the open forest; and on each it was the male bird that was
sitting. Two of the nests had eggs, and one young."

Eggs have becu taken during the montiis of October, November and
December.

431. — PoDAKGUS sTRiGoiDEs, Latham. — (40 and 41)
P. cuvieri, Vigors and Horsfield.

TAWNY FROGMOUTH.

Figure. — Gould : Birds u£ Australia, fol., vol. li., pis. 3 and 4.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvi., p. 631.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould: Birds of Australia (1848),
also Handbook, vol. i., pp. 85 and 88 (1S65) ; North : Austn.
Mus. Cat., pp. 26 and 27, pi. 6, figs. 3 and 4 (1889).

G'eu)/rapliical Distrihutiun. — Queensland, New South Wales, Vic-
toria, South Australia and Tasmania. According to Harteit, Austraha
in general.

Ned. — Usually a frail (but occasionally a thick) platform composed
of dead twigs, sometimes intermingled with grass, rootlets, &c., and
genei'ally placed in the fork of a horizontal limb of any suitable tree
or on the sphntered butt where a branch has been broken off, in open
or thick forest. Diameter, 7 to 8 inches. (See illustration.)

Eijtju. — Clutch, two usually, rare exceptions three ; elhptical in
shape ; texture somewhat coarse ; surface slightly glossy and very
minutely pitted ; colour, perfectly white. Dimensions in inches of a
clutch from Victoria : (1) 1-73 x 1-18, (2) 1-65 x 1'16 ; of a pair taken in
Tasmania, which has here and there small limy excrescences on the
sui-face : (1) 1-8 x 1-24, (2) 1-71 x 1-24; and of a triplet of much smaller-
sized examples taken in Queensland: (1) 1-59 x 1-16, (2) 1-58 x 1-2],
(3) 1-53 X 1-17.

Observations. — The eight species of Podargi enumerated by Gould
have been reduced, in the hght of more recent Imowledge and investiga-
tion, to four or five species and sub-species. However, the great
natm-alist e\'idently had some misgivings about the multiphcity of his
species, because he said no one group of Australian birds had given him
so much difficulty in discriminating the species as the Podargi, and
especially asked Australians, and others of course, to ascertain if the
difference in colovu' which occurs in these birds be distinctive of their
sex, and, if so, to which the respective tints of red and grey pertain.

According to the careful comparisons b}' Mr. Ernest Hartert in the
Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum (vol. xvi.) it will be noticed
that itndcr the heading of the Tawny-shouldered Podargus, or Frog-
mouth (P. strigoides), is included P. cuvieri, P. gouldi, and the ever
doubtful P. 7)irgnrcphahis.

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43S. — VwBttsiffVi imftS^BSMaiBE, GobM. — (-93 and 44j
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BiOf . Sac-, ITirarirui

X. W«at sad &i'- ^BHihrili*

NESTS AND EGGS OF AZ'STRAT.TAN B/RDS. 541

Xest. — Flat, slightlv concave ; constnictcd of greyish, dead,
branching twigs, apparently broken off the trees by the birds. One nest
from Western Australia has a few portions of grass-tree ( Xanthorrhrio )
needles intermixed; usually situated on the horizontal forked branch
of a tree — eucalypt. melaleuca, &c. Dimensions. 9 or 10 inches in
diameter by 2 inches in thickest part.

Eqgs. — Clutch, two ; long oval in shape ; texture fine ; surface
slightly glossy ; colour, pure white. Dimensions in inches of an odd
example from Western Australia : 1-74 x M7; of a proper clutch from
Central Australia: (1) 1-69 x 1-25, (2) 1-56 x 1-22: of a set from
Northern Queensland: fl) 1-72 x M2, (2) 1-65 x 1-OS

Ohxervfifinnx. — If this species embraces Gould's doubtful P. hrarhi/p-
fertix* — the western variety — its geographical range is wide, ex-
tending from Western Australia round to North Queensland (where
it is the common species met with), and including Central South
Australia.

Like the other members of its genus, this Frogmouth exliibits con-
siderable variation in size and colour, but, as Gould points out, it may
Jie readilv distinguished from every other Australian species of
Podargi bv its smaller size and by the beautiful, delicate, moth-like,
painted plimiage.

A nest of this Frogmouth was taken for me at Quindalup, 21st
October, 1889, during my visit to Western Australia. It was situated
about ten or twelve feet from the ground in a paper-bark tree
(Mflnlenra ). and contained two eggs, one unfortunately being broken.
In Western Australia the nest is sometimes placed in the fork of a
grass-tree (Xanfhnrrlirra ) as well as in eiicalypts.

With regard to the bird in its more northern habitat, Mr. Le Souef
records: — "The nest of this bird was found on November 25th, 1896,
and contained two eggs, much incubated ; on the same day another
nest was discovered which contained two young ones covered with
white down, and about a week old. In both instances the male was
sitting on the nest, the female being in a neighbouring tree ; and in the
^'arious nests of this bird that I have found, in every instance so far,
when I have secured the sitting bird, either on eggs or young, it has
on dissection proved to be the male.

" Tliey are sleepy-looking bii-ds. and do not as a rule leave the nest
until almost within one's reach, and then only to fly leisurely to another
tree not far off, where they can be easily secured. Occasionally I
have noticed the female resting close to the male as he sits on the nest,
but as a rule they are on a neighbouring tree, and the report of a gun
close bv does not seem to disturb them much. The present nest was
built on the horizontal branch of a eucalyptus, about fifteen feet from
the gi-ound, being almost flat and composed of twigs without any lining."

• I am not yet prepared to admit that P. hmchyptcrus and P. phali?no:des are
really identical.

542 \ESTS AXD EGGS OF *U ST F ALIAS' BIKDS.

433. — ^PoDABcrs ocellatts (snb-spedes) marmoratts. Gonld. — (47)

MAKBLED FROGMOUTH.

Figure. — Gonld : Birds of Anstralia, fol., sopp., pi. 4
Rifercnce. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mas., voL xvi., p. 635.

Geographical Distribution. — Qaeensland.
Xett and Egg*. — See Appendix.

Obterraiionf. — ^This Frogmouth has now been assigned only a sub-
spea&c place. The original P. r/ctUatuf appears to be confined to
New Guinea. Gonld, after carefully comparing examples from both
localities, held that they were sp^ecifically distinct.

The Marbled Frogmouth with wedge-shaped lengthened tail is an
elegaiit species, and may be likened to the Papuan Frogmouth in
miniature. It is the- smallest of its genus.

Gould took his descriptions of both these birds from specimens shot
by MacgilHvray on the Cape York Peninsula during 1848 or 1849.
Much difference appears to exist in the colouration of the sexes. One
of the larger species I examined in the collection of Mr. D. Le Souef
was a verv distinct rustv-red colour.

St3-FAinLT — JECOTHELIS*.

434. — JExKiTHELES Nov^ ROLLAXDiiE. Latham.— (38 and 39)
JE. IturogaMtr. Gould.

LITTLE NIGHTJAR.

Figttri. — Gould : Birds of Anstralia, fol., toI. ii., pis. i and 2.

Reifraue. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., toI. xvi., p. 651.

Prctrioit! DeifTif- - ■ •■ ■ ■ n...:A Birds of .\u§traHa (1848),

als/j Ha.- :|; Thienem. Kortpfl. ges.

Voff (iSj. Cat., p. a6, pi. 14, fig. ii

(1S89) ; Le souei : Ibis. p. 313 (1896), also Victorian
Natnraliiit (1896).

Geographical Distrif/ution. — Australia and Tasmania.

]fe*t. — A hole or hollow spout, sittiatc from three feet to twenty
feet from the ground, of a tree living or dead, the usual lining br'ing
eucalypt leaves.

Eggi. — Clutch, three to four, occasionally five ; roundi-h. slightly
compreaaed at one end ; texture, strong but fine ; surface glossy ; colour,
white. Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch: (1) 1-08 x -84,

NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AVSTKALIAN BIRDS. 543

(2) 1-08 X -87, (3) 1-06 X -85. These eggs when rubbed together
produce a porcelain or china sound.

Observations. — Since the White-bellied Owlet Nightjar — J?, leuco-
gast&r of Gould, and the J^. noice hoJlandia of Dr. Latham, are deemed
identical, this Owl-like and very interesting httle creature enjoys a
great range, practically the whole of Australia and Tasmania. It is
between 8 and 9 inches in length. The plumage, in general terms, is
freckled with black, wliite, and grey, but the head is all dark, while the
underparts are much Ughter. Tlie bird's call at night is a fairly loud
double note, sounding like " chirk-chirk."

Gould, while traversing oiu: forests, procured its eggs. He ascer-
tained at least two broods are reared by each pair of birds dui-ing the
season. He had known yoimg to be taken in Tasmania in October,
and in New South Wales he himself procured eggs in January, which
may be taken with September prefixed as the two extremes of the
breeding season.

On the upper Werribee I had an opportunity of exainining several
nesting places of this little nocturnal bird. One was entirely lined with
dead leaves of the blackwood f Acacia). Another was in a hole about
six feet from the ground, in a Uving tree, from which the bird was
flushed by striking the tree with a tomahawk. The slightest tap suffices
to cause these timid httle creatures to slip out of their nesting or roost-
ing place. In this Lostance the eggs were about a foot from the entrance
and were deposited on the trampled-down nest of the \^'Tiit€-
throated Tree Creeper (Climacteris leucophcea), which was composed of
shreds of stringy bark and moss, lined with rabbits' fur, etc., and
contained one whole egg. besides fractiu-ed ones — prima facie evidence
that the Nightjar had " jumped the claim " of the Tree Creeper.
Date. October 11th, 1890.

In a forest in Western Australia, I was in the act of killing a snake,
when, out of a hole in a tree close by, a bird flopped against me. At
first I really thought another snake was upon me, but soon saw it was
a httle Owlet Nightjar that tlie unwonted disturbance had flushed
from its hollow hiding place ia a karri about four feet from the ground.

A note from Mr. James McDougall, Yorke Peninsula, South Aus-
tralia, states. ■" The Owlet Nightjar i* a somewhat scarce bird, nesting
and hving in holes of trees, from which it sUps out on the shghtest
alarm, thus betraying its eggs, which are two, white, and somewhat
roimd. '

ilr. D. Le Souef states that Mr. R. Hislop foimd the nest of the
White-belhed Owlet Nightjar in Northera Queensland on November
23rd, 1895, and that the three pure white eggs were laid on the decayed
wood at the bottom of a hollow branch of a eucalyptus tree. They
are very similar in appearance to southern examples, but are sUghtlv
more oval, and measure (V) 118 x -89. (2) M5 x -9, (3) M4 x -9 inches.

Mr. Keartland writes : — " Throughout the course of our joumev
(Calvert North-west Expedition), I frequently saw these birds fly about
our camp at night. As the caravan passed through the forests, the
unusual noise disturbed the Nightjars from their retreats in the hollow

; I , Af sT.s" I AT) FtlCS OF AT'STKAUAIV BIRDS.

branches of the (load trees. Whilst in pursuit of ducks with Mr. C. F.
Wells on the Sth August, he called my attention to one of these Mi-d*
perched within a few feet of my head. It was nearly black, but
whilst ch.angfing my cartridge it disappeared across the creek, and could
not again be found. Subsequently others were seen. They frequently
camo under the verandah at the telegiivph station at night in pursuit
of insects, flving in and out like Welcome Swallows."

FAMILY— CORACnD.^ : ROLLERS.
Sub-family — Cor.vciin.e.

435. — EuRYSTOMUS AVSTR.\i.is, Swainson. — (59)
ROLLER OR DOLLAR BIRD.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Austr.ilia, fol., vol. ii., pi. 17.

Heference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. -^./a.

Prei'ious Description! of Egg.<. — Gould; Birds of .\ustralia (184S);
also Handbook, vol. i., p. 120 (i86^1; Ramsay: Proc. I.inn.
Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. vii., p. 46 (i88i); North : .\ustii. Mus.
Cat., pi. 14, fig. I (iSSq) ; l,e Soui-f : Victorian N.Tturalist, vol.
xvi., p. 70 (iS()q1.

Gfoflrnpliirnl Dhfrihtifioii. — Australia (except South and West^
also New Zealand (a<videntalV Lord Howe Island. New Guinea, and
throughout the Moluccas and Celebes.

Xfxt. — A hole in a hollow limb or tree, the eg^ being deposited
upon the decayed wood-dust within.

Efff/s. — Clut<'li, four; roundish in shapi' ; textiire of shell fiiu> ;
surface exceedingly glossy ; colour, beautiful pearly-white. Dimensions
in inches of a pair : (\) 1-45 x 1-15, (2) 1-.19 x 1-14 ; of a proper clutch :
(1) 1-4 X 112, (2) 1-38 X 1-15, (3) 1-34 x 11,5. (41 1-3 v M4.

Ohnrrvatinnx. — The Rollers (a name suggested by their rolling
antics when flying), or Dollar Birds as they are more commonly called
(on account of the round, white mark on each wing, which sliows out
ag.iinst the general bluish plumage'), arc obseryed to aiTive in the
Cardwell district from northward in August, and reach Southern
Queensland and New South Wales in September. Occa.sionallv thev
w.ander as far south a-s Victoria. Tliev have been noted at Warnvn-
dvte, on the Yarra ; and in the sea.son (November) of 1893 I saw a wing
of a Dollar Bird that was shot in the Lcrderderg Ranges alwve Bacchus
Marsh, November 27th, 1893. Fiwthcr occurrences have been
reported on the Mitta Mitt,"!. 1801 (J. HammcrtonV. Murray. 31st
Octol>cr, 180-1 (.7 A. Tr.Tsk); at Cowwarr (A W. Milligan) ; the
Dandononps (R O. Chandeler) : Ascot Vnle (A. Coles); and Somervillc

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BTUVS. 543

(G. E. Shepherd). As soon as the birds have reached their southern
limit they commence breeding operations, which arc carried on to
about December (some observers say two broods are reared), and by
February both old and young commence to retire northward.

As Gould remarks, the Roller is bold at all times, but especially
in the breeding season, when it attacks with the utmost fury any
intruder that may venture to approach the hole in the tree where its
eggs are deposited. It will frequently fight with the Great King-
fisher or Laughing Jackass, and successfully " jump " its nesting hole.
Dr. Ramsay has actuaUy seen the young of the Great Kingfisher
thrown out of the nest by the Roller. Touching the fury of the
Rollers, my (Jei-man friend, Mr. Lau, tells a good story in circuni-stantial
fashion. He says : " It was in the month of September I detected
the breeding place of one about sixty feet from the ground in the knob
hole of a very stout and tall eucalypt near the Mclntyre Brook, at
Whetstone. Seeing the bird flying in and out, I waited for a week
before sending up an alx)riginc to make sure that eggs were deposited.
With great reluctance, and under promise to give him a linen coat
and trousers, half a bottle of rum in addition to a glass before starting,
I persuaded my climber to the task, also promising to be in readiness
with my gun to .shoot the birds in case they should attack him while
taking the eggs. Now on the way up there was a portion of a thick
barrel, and to overcome this I provided him with four 6 in. nails to
insert in the tree, for placing his big toe on. Just being in this act.
both birds descended, sat soon amongst his black hair, pecking away,
at the same time uttering their low-toned noise. Although my black-
fellow was crying out ' shoot 'em, shoot 'em !' I waited until they left
him. Both bLrd^ were shot. I found a complete egg in the female ;
my man taking three more out of the hole, completed the clutch (four)."

Mr. Lau once reared a pair of young Rollers. Aft«r a lapse of
two months, or alx)ut the time of their migi-ation, the impulse became
so strong in the birds that in endeavouring to escape they destroyed
themselves, knocking their heads against the top of the cage. They
were fed on raw meat.

FAIMILY— MEROPID^ : BEE EATERS.

436. — Merops ornatus. Latham. — (58)
BEE EATER.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fo!., vol. ii., pi. 16.

Rejerence. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. 74.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of .Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. i., p. ii8 (1865I ; North: Proc. Linn.
See, N.S. Wales, vol. ii., 2nd ser., p. 441 (1887); North:
Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 34 (1889) ; Le Souef : Victorian Naturalist,
vol. xvi., p. 70 (i8gg).

Genf/raphircil Dixfrihnfinn. — Whole of Australia ; al?o New Guinea
and adjacent islands, Moluccas, Celebes, Flores and Lombock.
35

546 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Nesi. — A chamber or excavation at the termination of a small tunnel
about three or four feet in length, drilled into a sand ridge or bank,
but sometimes driven obliquely into flat ground.

E<j(js. — Clutili, four to five; round or round oval in form; texture
of shell fine ; surface glossy ; coloiu", pure white. Dimensions in inches
of a clutch; (1, oval) -95 x -74, (2, oval) -94 x '77, (3, round) -89 x -75,
(4, round) -86 x -78.

Observations. — Among the Australian birds there is none so graceful
and few more beautiful than the Bee Eater. It has two small, plimied,
central tail feathers, and general phunage of rich golden green and sky
blue. Tlie throat is rich yellow. Beneatii that marking is a band
of black. The long, pointed, and slightly curved bill is black, while
the lovely eyes are ruby, and the remarkably small feet arc nondescript
g^'een. Length of bird, 10 inches, including tail G inches, and bill 1|
inches. Like many of our birds, it is a partial migrant, wandering
between the northern and southern parts of the Continent, according
to the season. Gould has recorded that some* of the Bee Eaters arrive
in New South Wales from nortliward in August (? September), depart-
ing again in Marcli. I found that in their southern limit in Victoria and
South-west Australia the birds arrive about the beginning of October
and commence to drill their nesting holes about the end of the first
week in November, laying late in that month or the beginning ot
December. Although not altogether gregarious, Bee Eaters frequently
nest neai* each other in sand ridges or other favourable spots. Once
in December I spent a hot afternoon on the natural embankments that
rise on the east side of the salt lakes in the Bcnjeroop (Victoria) district.
Into one of these singular banks many of the gorgeous birds had drilled
their tunnels. Before I reached the egg chamber of the first hole
I had to mine fully the length of my gun. Having secured the
pearly set of eggs, on account of the intense heat and dust I gave up
fiulher exploration, to the probable satisfaction of the other beautiful
birds. However, my friend Mr. George H. Morton at another time,
26th November, persevered near tlie same locality, taking five clu'ches,
namelj' : 5, 5, 4, 4, and 2 eggs respectively.

With regard to the Bee Eater. Mr. Hermann Lau lias left some
very interesting notes in manuscript. On the Darling Downs (Q.). he
observes, the birds come in Septem1x>r, leaving in FcbmaiT. He
always found the entrance to the tunnel of their nest faced west and
north, to avoid, apparently, the rainy weather from the opjwsite
(hrections. Wiien bun-owing, the birds work with zest, the tunnel
often extending to a length of four to five feet, and in a slant of about
fifty degrees. The excavation at (he end of the tunnel in some
instances w<vs large, .about two .nid a half feet in circumference.
"What," Mr. Lau .asks, "becomes of all the sand displaced? because
wc rarely see more than a handful, in the fonn of a little ridge at the
entrance." He answers his own ([ucstion by supposing that tli(> birds

• AM nvidenilv 'lo not miRralc, because crrs have Iwen t.iken in North Queens-
l.ind during October.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

54/

partly use thoiv \vings like shovels to scatter the sand to the winds.
Mr. Lau concludes wnth the following incident, which occuiTed near
Yaudilla, November, 1867, and is told with characteristic German
zest : " I shall relate an adventure wliieli nearly deprived me of my
life had not the all-protecting hand of Providence averted such a
calamity. One day, in the month of November, being very hot, I went
to a sand ridge near Tummaville cattle station, belonging to Yandilla,
twelve miles to the south of it, in search of Bee Birds' eggs. Seeing
two of these birds on a bush, I soon detected their homestead. I
managed to jirocure a stiff stick for opening the passage, working hard
to a distance of three feet, thinking bottoming the hole and doing so
felt sometliing slipping in my hand ; repeating my grasp suggested
yoimg birds, the second time the toiich was evidently cold. It stiiick
me an iguana was the intruder, as I had seen before such animals
coming out of similar places with a 3'oung Bee Bird in its mouth.
Well, working the stick to tlie end, I perceived something got hold of
the point, and, by gradually extracting the stick, beheld to my gi-eat
horror a brown snake five feet long — one of the most venomous of its
kind — savagely biting the point. I dragged it to the entrance by its
teeth and quickly despatched the arch-enemy, thanking my God for
the release of so gi'cat a danger. Finding myself full of nervousness,
I hastened home to allay such a feeling hy drinking a glass of brandy
and water."

Sub=order — Halcyones.

FAMILY— ALCEDINID^ : KINGFISHERS.

Sub-family — Alcedinin^.

437. — Alcyone azure.^, Latham. — (69 and 70)
A. (lifmenensis, Gould.

BLUE KINGFISHER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. ii., pi. 25.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. 168.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. i., p. 140 (1865) ; Ramsay : Ibis, vol. ii.,
new ser., p. 327 {1S66) ; Campbell : Victorian Naturalist (1S88) ;
North : .\ustn. Mus. Cat., p. 40 (1S89), also app. ii. (1S90).

Geographical Distribution. — Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria,
South Australia and Ta.smania.

Nest. — An excavation at the tennination of a tunnel, drilled into a
bank, usually of a river or creek, or into a mound of earth attached to
the base of an uprooted tree.

548

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Eggs. — Clutch, five to seven ; round in shape, contracted at one
end; texture of shell fine; surface exceedingly glossy; colour, pearly-
white. Dimensions in inches of a clutch: (1) 9 x -76, (2) 9 x -75,
(3) 87 X -74 ; of a set which is larger, taken in Tasmania ; (1) -94 x -78,
(2) -94 X -75, (3) -92 x -78.

Ohservatiom. — What obscn-er has not hngercd in some sylvan nook,
by the margin of a tranquil stream, and wth admiration watched this
beautiful species pass quickly up or down over the siu^acc of the water,
displaying in a flash of splendour its fine ultramarine coat, and uttering
at intervals its single squcak-likc note ] — or has not seen the bird silently
perched on a twig or dead branch of a snag, where, with spasmodic
motions of the head, it fully exposes its rich buff or reddish-orange
breast, while now and again, like an arrow, it darts into the water to
capture finny spoil ?

In bycgonc days 1 often found the nesting place of the Blue King-
fisher in the shelving banks of the Yarra, behind Toorak, lu-ar
^Melbourne. The entrance was about 1 1 inches in diameter. At
the termination of the tunnel, which ascended slightly for twelve or
fifteen inches, was a chamber between six and seven inches in diameter,
for the reception of the eggs. The floor of this chamber, which was
below the level of the tunnel leading to it, was usually filled with an
accumulation of small fish bones and remains of water-beetles, amongst
whidi the peai-ly-white eggs rested. Once I found a nest near Lake
King, Gippsland, but away from water, in a small bank tiiat had
been caused by the uprooting of a fallen tree. The nest contained
eggs, and was discovered by the bird flying out at my feet.

The breeding season commences in September (August according
to Gould), la.sting till January, during wliicli period prob.ibly two broods
arc reared. Gould states liiat inunedialely on leaving their nest the
young follow their parents from one part of the river to another, aiul
are fed while resting on some stone or Ijrancli ne.ar the water's edge.
They soon, however, become able to obtain their own food, and may be
observed at a very early ago diving into the water for a considerahle
depth to capture small fish or water insects. In Southern Queensland
this beautiful Kingfisher commences, usu.ally, to excavate it.s nest in
Octoljer. It .sometimes succeeds in rearing a large family. As many
as six fat fledgelintjs have been sei^ii luiddied together in their eartliv
ceU.

With regard to the Tjusuianian variety. Dr. Sliaipe states :
"A. (liemenenxiK cannot be separated from .1. azxirrn, and the
characters on which I de])ende<I in my ' Monngi-.Tpli ' are merely those
of an immature bird. '

Mr. A, V^. Brent has found tlic T.isuianian birds breeding .somewhat
plenlifilllv on the Duck River diniiii; iIh' months of Ortolicr and
November.

It will i)C observed liiat llie eggs of the Tasmaiii.in Hlue Kinglislier
are larger than tho.sc of the mainland variety.

XESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAI^ niKbS. t^j^g

438. — Alcyone azurea (sub-speciess) i'vlchka, Gould. — (71)

PURPLE KINGFISHER.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. i6g.

Vrcvious Description of Eggs. — North: Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales,
2nd ser., vol. iii., p. 269 (1888).

Gen(ir(ii)]iic(tl Didrihution. — North-west Australia, Northern Teixi-
tory aud North Queensland.

Nest. — Usually a hole in the bauk of a stream.

Egys. — Clutch, five, probably six occasionally ; similar to those of
the southern representative, A. azurea, being rounded in form, pearly
wliite, and the texture of the shell fine and very glossy. Dimensions
in mches: (1) "87 x -73, (2) 85 x -74 (North).

Observations. — From the resplendent beauty of the purplish-blue of
its coat the Piu'ple Kingfisher is probably the most captivating of the
Australian Alcyones, and is closely alhed to, if not actually a sub-
species of the lovely Blue Kingfisher — A. azurea.

Mr. North gives an interesting accoimt of the finding of the first
recorded nest of the Purple Kingfisher by Messrs. E. J. Cairn and
Robert Grant, vfho were collecting in the neighbourhood of the Mount
Bellenden-Ker, Northern Queensland, on behalf of the trustees of the
Australian Museum. The following is Mr. Grant's own statement
relative to the taking of the nest ; —

"On the 26th December, 1887, at Riverstone, about sixteen miles
inland from Cairns, in company with an aboriginal named ' CharUe '
(native name Euryimba), I saw a Kingfisher fly into a hole in the bank
of a creek. After running forwai^d and placing my hat over the en-
trance, I, with my sheath-knife, enlarged the opening, and putting my
hand in caught one of the parents. While engaged in seeming it, my
attention was drawn away from the nest for a moment, when to my
surprise another bird flew out, so both the parent birds were in the
hole at the same time. Afterwards, upon clissection, the bird I cap-
tiu-cd proved to be the male. The ne.st. if worthy of the name, was
placed near the end of the tunnel, wliicli was about sixteen inches in
length and inclined upwards. It was composed of a few cast fish bones,
and small pieces of decayed roots, but in all not sufficient to protect
the eggs from the sandy soil at the bottom. The nest contained five
eggs, three of which were unfortunately broken."

550 S'ESTS A\D EGCS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

439. -Alcyone pcsilla, Temiiiinck. — {12)

LITTLE KINGFISHER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, £ol., vol. ii., pi. 26.
Rcferenct. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. 171.

Ge<j//raj/hical Didrihution. — Northern Tcrritorj' and Nortli Queens-
land ; also New Guinea.

Nent. — A hole, usually in the bank of a mountain stream.

Eyys. — Clutch, five probably. Undescribed.

Observations. — This tiny creature, which is only 5 inches in length,
is interesting because it is probably the smallest of its tribe in the
world. With the intense blue of its coat and silky white undcr-surfacc,
it may be .said to resemble a miniature MacLeay or the Forest King-
fisher.

Tlio lovely Little Kingfisiicr is a native of Northern Aastralia. and
is found as far down the Queensland coast as Cardwcll, where Mr. K.
Broadbcnt observed it .somewhat common, but most frequently found
in the smaller scrubby creeks. Leaving the neigiibourhood of the roast,
it resorts in October to the heads of the mount.iin streams, such as
occur on Gowtic Creek, at the base of Mount Graham, for the puiiwse
of breeding. By February and March, Mr. Broatlbcnt found the Little
Kingfisher again quite common alx»ut the estuaries of the small man-
grove creeks which intersect the beach.

440. — Syma KLAVinosTHiB, Gould. — (07)

YELLOW-BILLED KINGFISHER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., supp., pi. 5.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. 197.

(Jriiiirajihiral Diilrilinlinii . — Northern Territory and North Queens-
land.

Nest and Eyt/K. — Undescribed.*

• Since writing this, through the courtesy of Mr. T. \. Ilrilllcbaiik, I have
l)ccn cii.'iblcd to de-cribc — Victorian .N'alnralisi, vol. xvi., ]>. 37 (1.S99) -a p.iir
III eggs from Cape Vork, taken January, i.Si^S, from a hollow, dead tree in open
scriil) near mangroves. The eggs arc roinid in .hapi', sharjily nipped off at
one end ; tckliire of sh<dl fine ; surface glosny ; 1 oloiir, pnn- while. Dimension-
in ini hes : (i) i-o x '^^H, (.4) i-o x '88. Must resemble those ul the Whilc-lailcd
Kingfisher

XESTS AXD EGGS OF M'STRAUAX BIRDS. 551

ObseriHitiom. — The Yellow-billed Kingfisher is one of the rare birds
of the rich sci-ubs of the northern part* of Australia. The
more intelhgent natives of Cape York, whom MacGilhvray questioned
separately, agreed in stating that it« mode of uiditicatiou was
similai- to that of the White-tailed l\inglisher ( Tanysiptera sylvia),
and that it, like that species, laid several white eggs.

Sub-family — Dacelonin^.

441. — Dacelo gigas, Boddaort. — (60)

BROWN KINGFISHER (LAUGHING JACKASS).

Figure. — Gould ; Birds of Australia, fol., vol. ii., pi. iS.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. 204.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1S4S) ;
also Handbook, vol. i., p. 1J4 (1S65) ; North: Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 36, pi. 6, fig. I (1SS9).

Geographical Distribution. — Queensland, New Sotith Wales, Vic-
toria, South and West (introduced 1896) AustraUa.

Xest. — In a hole or spouted limb of a tree ; but is sometimes,
especially in Queensland, in a hole drilled into the nest of ants or ter-
mites situated in a fork or upon the side of a standing tree. An instance
is known of a nest m;uie in the heart of a " calabash " — the fern,
Plafyeerium alcicome.

Eggs. — Clutch, three to foiu-; round in shape, sharply contracted
at one end ; texture of shell fine ; surface glossy ; colour, piu'e white.
Dimensions in inches of a clut<-h : (1) l-9"2 x 1-45, (2) 1-83 x I'o, (3)
1-83 X 1-42.

Observations. — The Great Brown Kingfisher (native name Kooka-
burra), or more commonly called Laughing Jackass, from its qtiaint
appeai'ance and its rolhcking laughter-like notes, is not only a favoiuite
amongst naturalists, but with every dweller in the bush. The adtilt
Laughing Jackass has a dusky back and \vings, some parts of the wings,
especially the shoulders, also the lower portion of the back, being
relieved with markings of blue. Tlie tail is brownish, banvd with
black. The rest of tlie plumage may be tenned buff, with a dark-
brownish wash on the feathers of the head and ear covei'ts. The
awkward-looking bill is browniish-black on the upper maadible, and
yellowish or p;ile buff on the under mandible, while the eyes are dark-
brown, and the feet yellowish. The total length of the bird is about
IS inches, including tail 5i inches, and bill 3 inches.

55-

nMsts axd eggs of aVstrauan birds.

Amongst the most chccx-ful of forest sounds at evening are this
birds notfs when heard among lofty trees up some gully. Tlieu
again at early dawn, soon after the eliirping notes of the Yellow Robin
and sometimes before the melodious Magpie, the voices of llie Jackasses
herald the coming day. On two mornings I timed the Jackass's first
song at 4.20, or just one hour before sunrise. Again at evening it is
delightful to listen to these birds in the bush, when they are particu-
larly noisy. But all settle down quietly as the last light of day fades
out. It has been stat<;d that the female only voices tiie laughter-like
notes, while the male accompanies her with the gi-owling noise. Is it
a fact?

Until recent years the Great Biown Kingfisher did not appear to
exist in Western Australia — I refer more particularly to the forests
of the south-west, which would appear equally as well adapted to the
jjcculiar habits of the bird as the eastern timljcr tracts are. However,
Mr. G. A. Keartland, of the Calvert expedition in 1896, states wliilst
camped at Mullawa he heard the well-known notes of these birds, and
observed a few of them always near the camps. They were also noted
between Fremantle and Perth. Perhaps these latter were some of the
birds captured in Victoria by Mr. James Cooper, and sent to Western
Australia by order of the Government, or perhaps the Jackasses had
followed the numerous other eastern " Jackasses " who had been
attracted to the glorious west by the wonderful gold thscoveries. The
Brown Kingfisher being the southern fonn of the genus DaceJo, I was
agrccablv siu-priscd. in 1885, to find the bird as far north as the Cai-d-
well Scnibs, Northeni Queensland. Since then. Mr. Dudley Le Souef
infonns me he noted the bird on the Bloomfield River, still fmtlier
north. It has been observed in the interior at Coopers Cieck.

Tlie chief breeding months of the Brown Kingfisher are from Sep-
tember to the end of the year, during which period usually two broods
are reared. In Southern Queensland Mr. Lau observed that the first
clutdi was generally laid in September, and the second in Novembca-.
The nesting place is not lined in any way ; the eggs arc merely
deposited on the dust of the decompo.scd wood in the hollow, or. if in
termites' nests, on the bare lloor at the end of the tunnel. Old nests
are sometimes resorted to ; but if new quarters have to be found, both
male and female birds assist in excavating the hole.

On October 31st (1893), Mr. George 11. Morton took three eggs
from the spout of a red-gum tree, five feet from the ground, near tlie
Murray River. On Novemlx^r •J7th. he fomid a young bird in llu' same
nest. When Mr. Morton removed the three eggs he may have left
one egg remaining, but the gi-eater probability is the fourth egg was
laid afterwards. However, on the 12th December the young had left
the nest. Tlicrcforc we may infer that from the lime the female de-
posits her eggs till the yoiuig (piit the nest is about si.\ weeks.* Aft4.'r
the yoimg leave the nest their parents ((Hilinin' to feed tlieiii for a

• I po^ses- a pair cif live Jackasses that was taken (rtim u nest when the birds
were about a ni>inlh old. .\t the iijjc ol six weeks one eiideavmired In laii^h.
and both could laugh loudly and lustily before they were three muntlis old.

YOUNG LAUGHING JACKASSES^

From a Photo b\ the Aiitlior-

A'ESTS A.\D EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

553

time. By their clamorous uoise for food the whereabouts of the young
is easily ascertained.

In my note-book I find the following recorded : —

9th November, 1870. — Visito<l a nest, containing tliree young, in
the hole of a tree ncai' Dandenong Creek.

11th October, 1880. — Found an egg fresh upon the ground near
Berwick.

13th October, 1885. — Present when a pair of eggs was taken from
termites' nest at Coomooboolaroo, Queensland.

1st November, 1890. — Clutch, three eggs, taken at Clayton,
Victoria.

6th November, 1892. — Observed nest with young, MmTay River.

Jackasses have been observed gathering mussels (Uniu) at the edge
of a creek, and whacldng them against a log or limb endeavouring to
open them ; they will also dive for small cray-fish. Mr. C. H. McLennan
tells me he has obsei-ved these birds perching on a limb just over
the river (Wimmera), and diving into shallow water after yabbies (small
crayfisii), sometimes going right under.

No doubt the Jackasses only kill snakes for food, because dead ones
are occasionally found in their nesting holes. Mr. A. W. Milhgan,
formerly of Traralgon, Victoria, also proved the fact by taking yoimg
Jackasses from a nest in the vicinity of his home and keeping them in
a cage. When the old bkds found out the captives, they sometimes
brought, amongst other tit-bits, snakes, and large ones too, to feed their
young.

In reference to Ja<^kasses killing snakes, Mr. H. W. Wlieelwi-ight
ooserved a pair that had a disabled carpet snake imder an old gum
tree. Tlie bu'ds sat on a dead branch above the reptile, every now
and again darting do\vn and pecking it, and by their antics and chatter-
ing appeared to considerably enjoy themselves at the expense of the
snake.

Mr. Thos. R. Macdougall's (Queensland) field observations on
"Jackasses v. Snakes," read: —

" On one occasion I saw a Jackass with a black snake about twelve
inches or eighteen inches in length. On frightening the bii-d it dropped
the snake, and I carefully examined it and foimd that it had not been
long dead, and was only wounded behind the head. Its neck was
broken. I also saw on one occasion a Jackass and green snake that
had been killed while on the gi-ound. The snake was coiled tightly
arovmd the bird's neck and body, so that it could not rise from the
si'oimd."

554 NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

442. — Daceu) leacuu, Vigors and Horsfield. — (61)

LEACH KINGFISHER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. ii., pi. 19.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. 206.

Previous Descriptions of £^^i.— Ramsaj- : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.
Wales, vol. vii., p. 45 (1882) ; Campbell : Southern Science
Record (1883) ; North : .•\ustn. .\Ius. Cat., pi. 6, fig. 2 (1889).

Geuyraphical Distrihulion. — Northuni Territory and Queensland.

Nest. — A hole in a treCj or a tunnel drilled into a nest of ants or
tormites, upon the side of a tree.

Egg-i. — Clutch, three usually ; round in shape, sliarply contracted
at one end ; texture of shell fine ; surface glossy ; colour, pure white.
Dimensions in inches of odd examples: (1) l'9x 1'45 (2) 1-73 x 1-49;
of a proper clutdi, (1) l-88x 1-5, (2) 1-83 x 1-52, (3) 1-79 x 1-49.

Ohservatiiins. — Although the Laughing Jackass was the first dis-
covered bird of its remarkable genus, and was scientifically called
Diirehi (jjgd^. the Le;icii Kingfisher, in Queensland, it is actually larger
in all respects, and, being a tropical fomi, is more highly coloured. Tlie
beautiful bluish markings on the wings and upon the back are more
pronounced, and are seen to advantage when the bird is flying from
tree to tree. While in the male the tail is deep blue, baiTcd and tipped
with white, in the female it is brown, conspicuously barred with dark
blue.

With regard to the nidifica.tion of tliis fine bird the observations
already recorded for the Great Brown Kingfisher are applicable,
so similar ai-e the habits of the two .species. The breeding montlis are
also the siime. However, tlie comical sounding voices are not. Tlie
Great Brown has earned for itsself the name of " Laughing " Jackass ;
but when the Leach bird " laughs " it produces a barking or yelping
noise which is exceedingly striking when a person hears it for the first
time.

The following interesting fact in the natural economy of Leacli
Kingfisher indicates a connecting link between the Dacihi anil the true
Kingfi.slier. Tlie " Bush Naturalist,'' writing in the " Queenslander,"
7tli December, 1878, rem. irks : "I was camped 011 the hanks of tlie
crystal-clc.ar wal<?rs of tiie Gregory River, wlnii all at once one of these
birds (Leach Kingfisher) plunged iiilo a dii-p ])iiol from a branch some
thirty feet in height ; it went completely under and reappeared with
a small fisli in its beak."

XESTS AXD EGGS OF AU ST KALI A A' BIRDS. 555

443. — Dacelu leachu (sub-spfcies) cekvina, Gould.-^(62)
D. uccideiitalis, Gould.

FAWN-BREASTED KINGFISHER.

figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. ii., pi. 20.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. 207.
Previous Description of Eggs. — Le Souef : Ibis, p. 392 (1897).

GeiKjrapliical DiMriliiitiuii. — West and North-west Australia, Nor-
tliuru Territory, and North Queensland.

Xcst. — A hole excavated in termites' mound on a eucalypt, some-
times in holes or hollow spouts of trees — eucalypt, melaleuca, &c.

Eggs. — Clutch, two to three ; round oval in shape ; texture of shell
fine ; sui'face glossy ; colour, pure white. Dimensions in inches of a
clutch: (1) 1-62 X 1-38, (2) 1-58 x 1-4, (3) 1-52 x 1-3.

Observations. — Tlie Fawn-breasted Kingfisher is a dweller in the
more northern part of tlie Continent, from the region of the Gascoyne to
Cape York Peninsula. It is much smaller in size than either of the other
Jackasses, and by some authorities is deemed to be a sub-species only
of Leachii. The disposition of the Fawn-breasted bird is reported to
be more shy and wai-y than the familiar Jackass of more southern parts.

Gilbert's observations are that it " inliabits well-wooded forests,
generally in pairs, is extremely shy, and difiicult to procure ; it is fond
of percliing on the toisniost dead branch of a tree, whence it can have
an uninteiTupted view of everything passing aroimd, and where it
pours out its loud discordant tones. Sometimes three or fom- pairs
may be heard at one time, when the noise is so great that no other
soimd can be heard. The natives assert that it breeds in the honey
season, which is the months of May, Jiuie, and July. From the dates
which follow I fear the blackfellows' theory about the laTOig months
must fall to the groimd.

The eggs of the Fawn-breasted Kingfi,sher, first described by my
friend Mr. D. Le Souef, were taken in November, 1896. He says: —
" I noticed this bird on two or three occasions in the open forest
country near Cooktown, and found two of their nests, each of wliich
contained three eggs. Both nests wea-c hollows scooj>ed out in Ter-
mites' nests in eucalyptus trees, one about tliirty feet from the groimd
and the other fifty. The bii'ds themselves were shy, and it is astonish-
ing how quickly they hear anyone approacliing the tree where they
are sitting on their nest, and they frequently fly off before being seen."

Mr. Han-y Barnard took a pair of eggs of this variety from the
hollow spout of a swamp gum (Eiir/ih/pfjis j at Pine Creek, Northern
Territory. 2.5th September. 1896, and another pair at Cape York,
9th November, 1896, this time in a paper-bark tree (Mehilcucn ). In
both instances the eggs were about a foot from the entrance of the

556 IVESTS A. YD EGGS OF AUSTRALIA!^ BIRDS.

hole. With regard to Gould's doubtful species Dac.clu dcciJeidalis, it
seems to Dr. Sharpe to be inseparable from D. cervina, the under sur-
face, he remarks, being perhaps rather paler and the crossbars more
obsolete. In the "Zoological Collections of H.M.S. Alert" (1884),
pp. 22-4, Dr. Sharpe gives some interesting critical remarks on a large
series of Laughing Jackasses in the British Museum. He says: — " Ihe
baning of the tail feathers must be set aside, being merely dependent
upon age ; but, taking D. cervina as the central fonn or leading type
of the Blue-tailed Jackasses of Austraha, we find that eastward (in
Queensland) it varies to tlic extent of becoming a larger bird, whiter
underneath, and always more or less barred on the under-surface, the
throat included (I). Icdcliii). In the western j)art of its range, the
bird has a tendency to become imiform underneath (D. uccidciifalisj,
but this may be due to the bleaching effect of I he climate."

444. -Halcyon macleayi, Janliue A- Selby. — (GG)
FOREST KINGFISHER.

Fii'ure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. ii., pi. .24.

Rcjercnre. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. 254.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of .Vustralia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. i., p. 134 (1S65); North: Ausln. Mus.
Cat., p. 38 (18S9).

Geographical Distrihution. — North-west Australia, Norih rii Tcn-i-
tory, Queensland and New South Wales ; also New Guinea.

Sent. — A liole in a tree or tree-ants' (termites') nest.

Eggs. — Clutch, fom- to five; roimd or round oval in shape; texture
of shell fine ; surface glossy ; colour, pure white. Dimensions in inches
of a proper dutch : (1) 1-0 x -8."). (2) -99 x -84, (3) -99 x -8, (4) -98 x -82.

Uhxt-rvafionx. — I possess pleasant recollections of several pairs of
these lovely Kingfishers that used to scream about our camp in a tropi-
cal forest near CiU'dwell. When they sometimes perclicd on a telegrapli
line close by we could not suflSciently admire tiieir rich I'russian-blue
coats and pure white vinder-surfaces. The birds are slightly smaller
than the common Kingfisher, The male pcssesses a white collar or
ring round the neck, which adormnent is absent in the female. I again
renewed the ac(ju:iinlance of the Forest or Macliay Kingfisher in tlie
Richmond River district. New South Wales, but of course it is not so
prevalent there as witliin the tropics. My son Archie, when in the
same district, 1897, noticed a nest of this Kingfisher drilled into a
clump of stag-horn fern ( I', ti/rirnriie).

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 557

The set of beautiful white eggs in my cabinet was taken from an
ant's nest (usually prominent objects) which was situated in the fork
of a bloodwood tree ( Eucalijptii^j at Roseneath, the property of the
Messrs. Gulliver, Towiis\dlle. The eggs were taken 25th October
(1885).

These beautiful Kingfishers soon betray the locality of their
nests, for on the approach of an intruder the birds scream loudly and
fly about in an excited manner.

Usual breeding months, October to February.

445. — Halcyon pyrrhopygius. Gould. — (64)
RED-BACKED KINGFISHER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. ii., pi. 22.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. 258.

Previous Descriptions oj Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. i., p. 131 (1865); Ramsay : Ibis, vol. ii. (new ser.),
p. 3^7 (1866) ; Ramsay: Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. vii.,
p. 45 (1S82). Le -Souef : Victorian Naturalist, vol. xvi., p. 70
(1S99I.

Gfixjrapldcal Disfribution. — Australia in general.

Ifest. — Usually a hole in a tree, but sometimes a tunnel drilled into
the side of a bank or dam.

Ef/f/x. — Clutch, four to five ; round in form ; texture of shell fine ;
surface glossy ; colour, pure white. Dimensions in inches of a clutch :
(1) 1-05 X -S", (2) 1-01 X -83. (3 )l-0 x -85, (4) -98 x -85.

Ohservatiijin. — This Kingfisher is .similar in size to the more com-
mon Sacred Kingfisher, but white takes the place of buff pliunage
underneath, while the head is mottled or streaked wdth wliite. Tlie
otherwise dull bluish-green plumage is relieved by the lower portion
of the back and rump being reddish-brown or chestnut, which at once
distinguishes this bii'd from the other Kingfisher, hence the name
" Red-backed. " Tlie Red-backed Kingfisher is found in the interior
of all the States. Although the Sacred or common Kingfisher is
found in the interior likewise, it is observed in greater niunbei's
between the ranges and the countiy bordering the sea, while the
Red-backed Kingfisher is exclusively a denizen of the interior and loves
to dwell where the myall and the mulga flourish, and where, I beUeve,
it is a stationary species. However during exceedingly dry seasons
individuals occasionally reach Victoria. During Christmas, 1897, Mr.
A. C. Smart shot a fine Red-backed Kingfisher in the Grampians.

Like the Sacred Kingfisher it lays in holes of trees, but also resorts
to laying underground, as the following incidents prove : — In Queens-
land, Mr. Lau once discovered a Red-backed Kingfisher dead, at the

(;i;8 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

entrance of a hole in a bank ; while in the Darling district. New South
Wales, Dr. Kamsay records tliat his brother took live eggs from the
end of a tunnel in the bank of a recently made dam. Eggs have been
taken in October and Novemljer.

446. — H.M.cYON SANCTUS, Vigors & Horsfleld. — (63)
SACRED KINGFISHER.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. ii., pi. 21.

Rejcrcncc. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. 267.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. i., p. 130 (i86t;) ; North : I'roc. I. inn. Snc,
N.S. Wales, 2nd ser., vol. ii., p. 441 (1887), also .\ustn. Mus.
Cat., p. 37 (1889) ; North : Trans. Koy. Soc, .South .\ustralia.
vol. xxii., p. IJ4 (i8!,8) ; Le .Souef : Victorian Naturalist, vol.
xvi., p. 71 (1899).

Geofirii fihiral Dixiril.iiliitii . — Wliole of Australia and Ta-sniania ; also
New Guinea and adj;u'ent islands, New Caledonia, Solomon Islajids,
New Hebrides, Moluccas. Celebes, Lombock. Java, and Sumatra.

Xeat. — A hole usually drilled into a decayed notch or elbow of
a cucalypt or other tree. Occasionally the hole is drilled into the
nest of the tree-ants or termites, situated in a fork or on boles of
trees. Rjirely is a hole tunnelled into a bank.

Efigs. — Clutch, four to five; roiuid in form, contracted at one end;
texture of shell fine ; surfa<'C glossy ; colour, pure wliite. Dimensions
in inches of a proper clutch : ("l) l"l x -87. VI) l-OG x -88, (3) 1-04 x -86.
(4) 1-02 X -86.

Ohservntinnx. — In spring and summer we are .ill famili.ir with the
loud " pee-pee-pee " notes of the Sacred Halcyon or Kingfisher. The
bird is well known by its long bill ,and contracted neck. Its coat,
including head and tail, is generally of a groenisli-blne. The broad
collar round the neck ;ind underneath parts are light liulT. and tiiere
is a deeper shade on the flanks. A conspicuous line from the nostrils
over each eye is .also buff. Feet greenish ; eyes dark brown. Total
length of bird, 8J inches, including bill 2 inches.

Gould observed in New South Wales the birds appeared in August,
and l)y the middle of Sijitcmber were plentifully disjicised over all
parts of (he country, and that after the breeding se.ison they began to
disappear northward, and by the end of January ven- few were seen.
Some of those birds would tlicrefore seem to retire nortliward earlier
than the u.sual i-un of migratory species. My earliest and latest notes
for this Kingfisher in the south are respectively 12th Septeml)or (1894),
in Rivcrina, and 3rd Maicli (ISOfi) at the Dandeiiiuigs. However, in
the vicinit}' of Melbourne on one occasion I fancied I heard a Sacred
Kingfisher, on miL'ration .i-i rarlv a« the 71 li S('|>t<'inbcr, at night.

NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

559

Another time I lipard tlu' unmistakable notes overhead at Essendon,
the nitrht of one '23vd October. The week follovvins; I saw a bird
perched on a chiuiiiey of the dwelUug opposite to niiue in Armadale.
It was early moru, and no doubt the feathered visitor had just arnved
from a northern Ihght. Kingfishers, like other biids, sometimes
wander from the beaten track of their fly lines. Mr. Harry Barnard,
wlule collecting near the Great Bamer Reef, Queensland, saw a Sacred
Kingfisher alight on the ropes of his craft, evidently much exhausted,
then fly to a small sand-bank near, where it remained amongst a
number of Terns (Sterna media).

During the breeding season these Kingfishers are exceedingly noisy,
and readily betray the whereabouts of their nest by uttering at
intruders loud screecliing cries of " cree-cree-cree." To show how the
domains of the Sacred Kingfi.sher have been encroached upon, I may
mention thai several times I took eggs from a tree where the Hawksburn
Railway Station now stands. The last nest I found was in the Big
Scnib, New South Wales. It was in the dead spout of a fallen tree.
Wliile standing upon the ground I could look down and just discern
five beautiful white eggs, reflecting the light from the entrance.

Mr. Hermann Lau observed in Southern Queensland that the Sacred
Halcyon mostly deposited its clutch in tlie dark-coloured nests of the
tree-ants or termites. Iguanas seek like pla<"es to repose in, but of
coui-se first devoming the eggs or yoiuig, for which the birds will fight
desperately.

With regard to the New Zealand Halcyon, which is allied to our
Halcyons, the late Mr. T. H. Potts has recorded the following interest-
ing note on the contents of a nest: — "October 10th, first egg laid;
second egg laid on the 12th, before 10 a.m. ; third egg laid on the
14th; fourth egg on the 15th; fifth egg on the 16th; sixth and last
egg on the 17th." Mr. Potts also ascertained that incubation lasts
about seventeen days, and when about twenty-fom- days old the
yovmg leave the nest well able to fly and follow their parents to the
feeding groimd.

The New Zealand Halcyon generally breeds undergroimd. I never
foimd one bird so doing, but Mr. G. A. Keartland and Dr. D'Ombrain
tell me they have taken the Sacred Halcyons' eggs from the banks of
the River Yarra, notably during the season 1894, while in 1898,
Mr. H. E. Hill found two nests of this Kingfisher with eggs, under-
ground, in the Bendigo district. He caught one of the birds in the
timnel.

The Sacred Kingfisher usually breeds during the months of October,
November and December, and occasionallv later, as Mr. G. E. Shepherd,
Somerville, Victoria, once took a clutch of eggs as late as the
4th Febi-uary (1897). In the north-west the members of the Calvert
expedition found it breeding during December and January, in trees
in the neighbourhood of the Fitzroy River, where the birds (likewise
their eggs) appeared smaller than those of the migrants that usually
go south.

560 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

447. — Halcyon soudidus, Gould. — (60)

MANGROVE KINGFISHER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Au.stralia, fol., vol. ii., pi. 23.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. 278.

Previous Description of Eggs. — North t Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales,
2nd ser., vol. vii., p. 395 (1802).

Geoyra/i]iica/ Dixtrihutuin. — Northern Territor}' and Queensland;
also New Guinea, Louisade Islands, and Aru Islands.

Neitt. — A hole tunnelled into the .side of termites' nest, or a tree
adjacent to mangi-ove tracts, or a hole in a mangrove tree itself.

Eggs. — Clutch, three, probably four occasionally ; round oval in
shape ; texture of shell fine ; surface glossy ; colour, pure white more
or less dulled by nest stains. Excepting for their large size resemble
those of the other Halcyons. Dimensions in inches of a pair ex
a clutch of three : (1) 1-3 x 1-0, (2) 1-26 x 1-0.

Ohse.rvations. — Not much is known of this fine nortln vn Kingfisher,
which is the largest in size of Australian Halcyons. As its specific
name implies, this species is not so gaily dressed as the other King-
fishers, its coat being more sombre or dusky. " Mangrove '' Kingfislier
appears an acceptable vernacular name for the bird because of its
natural disposition to frequent these safe and sloppy retreats by the
sea-.shore and river's mouth.

Probably the first authenticated set of this rare Kingfisher's eggs
was collected by Miss J. A. Fletcher, daughter of Mr. Price Fletcher,
the " Bush Naturalist '' of Queensland. It is always a plea-sure to
write up original field notes, moi-e especially those of lady field-
naturalists, who arc usually few and far between.

Miss Fletcher has tlioucjlit fully favoured me with a j>air of eggs
and the following memoranda: — "October 20th. lcS88. Took three
eggs of the Sonhd Kingfisher from hole in an ant's nest built on a gum-
tree clo.se to the sea beach ; the locality is about midway between
Wellington Point and Cleveland, Moreton Bay, and is locally known
as Ormiston. The eggs are large for the size of the bird, and have not
such a clear pearly appearance as the eggs of the Madeay and Azure
Kingfishers. In this ca.se the eggs were adv.inced in incubation."

" October 24th. 1888, near the same locality, saw a Sordid King-
fi.sher fly out of hole in liml) of mangrove-tree, and a.scending tlie tree
found three young ones, very little fledged. They were lying on the
soft rotten wood," In a little more descriptive language Miss Fletcher
continues: — "Oh! what mud I had to go through Ix-fore [ reached
that tree! The tnink wa.s high before the branches giew out, and mv
boots being very muddy and slipper^-. T had a slight trouble in a.scend-
ing the tree. However I managed it. and was just .ible to squeeze

NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTKAT.IAN BIRDS. 561

my hand into the hole whoro I felt three dear little baby Kingfishers ;
and how lovely and warm thoy were! I did not disturb them, and
as I was getting down off the tree I noticed the old bird sitting on
a neighboinnng mangrove, and I have no doubt she was wishing I
would go. But I did not huiTy myself, and she, being anxious to see
if her little ones were safe, did not wait long, but quickly and joyfully
flew back to her treasures. "

Tlie next set of Mangrove Kingfisher's eggs we hear of was exhibited
and described by Mr. A. J. North before the Linncan Society of New
South Wales. 30th November, 1892. The eggs were obtained through
the good agency of Mr. J. A. Boyd. The following is Mr. Boyd's own
interesting account of the finding : " While on a trip to Hinchinbrook
Island I was camped, in the beginning of October, 1892, on a ridge
which, intersecting the forest of mangi'oves, ran down to a salt-water
creek about two miles from the sea. On several successive days I had
noticed a Kingfisher (H . xardidus) settle on a limb of a tree that had
fallen into the stream, and stay there some little time picking and
pluming herself. As she always came from and returned in the same
direction, I concluded that she was building, and on the 6th insfc.
I traced her to a teiinites' nest in a blood-wood tree (Etirah/ptiis
rciri/mhaxa ), about thirty feet from the gi-ound, and leaning over the
water. Tlie tree was two feet and a-half at the base, and the ant nest —
not a large one — projecting only about twenty inches from the limb on
which it was placed. I sent my black fellow up, and he brought down
three eggs, two of which were slightly incubated, and reported there
was no made nest, the eggs being simply laid on the bare substance
of the ant-heap at the end of the burrow. I did not notice the male
bird near the nest, bvit heard him calling from a mangrove island about
two hundred yards awav.

Mr. Boyd informed Mr. North that on the 26th December following
he again visited the nest and flushed the Kingfisher from two fresh
eggs. Evidently the same bird that was robbed in October had laid
again, notwithstanding the termites' mound had been somewhat roughly
opened by the blackfellow's tomahawk on the previous occasion.

448. T.\NYSIPTERA SYLVIA, Gould. (68)

WHITE-TAILED KINGFISHER

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., supp., pi. 6.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xvii., p. 300.

Previous Peseriftions of Eggs. — Diggles : Companion Gould's Hand-
book, p. (1877) ; Campbell ; Southern Science Record
(1885); North: Austn. Mus, Cat., p. 39 {18S9) ; I.e Souef :
Ibis, p. 55 (1S98).

Geograj)hiraI Distrihutinn. — North Queensland.
36

562 NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Sest. — An excavation or tunnel in termites' .(\vhit<' ants') mound,
wliich are usually from one-and-a-half feet to two-and-a-half feet high
on the ground, and found in dense scnib. Tennitcs' mounds situated
upon trees are also used.

Eggx. — Clutch, tlu'ee Lo four; round in form; tcxluic of shell fine;
siuiace glossy ; coloiu", pure white. Dimensions in inches of a pair :
(1) 1-1 X -92, (2) 1-06 X -93; of a clutch: (1) 1-0 x -89, (2) -99 x -9,
(3) •97X-87.

Observations. — This most elegant species, sometimes known as the
Racket-tail Kingfisher, is by no means scarce in the Cape York Penin-
sula. Let Gould's own words describe its handsome dress; — "Crown
of the head, wings, and five lateral tail featliere on each side, blue ; car-
coverts, back of the neck and mantle, black ; in the centre of the latter
a triangular mark of white ; nunp and two middle tail featliers pure
white; under surface cinnamon-red; bill and feet seaUng-wax red."
The total length of this feathered beauty is 12 inches, including about
7 inches from the t;ul, which, however, is variable in length. lis remark-
able mode of uicUficatiou was first communicated lo Gould by an
informant who stated that according to the natives this ICinglisher
laid its eggs in a hole dug by itself in one of the ant-hills, which fonn
so remarkable a feature in the neighbourhood.

When collecting in the Bloonificld River distiicl in 1893. Mr. D.
Le Souef obsei-ved that the beautiful While-tailed Kingfisher always
selects the mounds of the wliite tennitcs or ants to make its nest in.
The mounds, as will be seen by the illustration, are of a conical shape
and not more than two-and-arhalf feet high, and arc found in the dense
palm scnibs on the coastal ranges. The birds come from northward
about the latter end of October, and commence excavating their nests
the second week in November. When the nests are fini'^hed the whit<^
ants carefully cement all the entrances of the mound into the nesting
chamber, and when the young birds have left the persevering tcnnit-es
soon fill up the excavation again, consequently old tunnels or nests arc
seldom found. Mr. Le Souef fiu-ther informs me that the birds are
by no means .shy. niirl their call is frequentlv heard in the scnib during
breeding season.

Mr. K. Broadbcnt found the bird prevalent at Cowrie Crock, fiuHhcr
south in the Cnrdwcll district, and once found at Dalrvinple (Ja]) a nest
in which the proper inhabitants of the tormitarium were actually
running over the four young ones, which in turn were sU-inding amongst
the insects. He also observed a nest of this Kingfisher in a mound of
termites on Bellonden-Kcr Range, at an elevation of 1.800 (ocl.

Mr. IlariT Barnard, when collecting at Cape York for Mr. 11. Le
Souef anri nUur Melbourne gentlemen, establislicd quiti- a "record
for the iiuml>cr of ucsKs he found of this beautiful Kingfi.sher. In
February. 1807, between the 2nd .ind Ifith day.s. he visited no Ic-w
than thirty-five ne.sts, a,s many as a dozen being di.scovered in one day,
all containing three egg,"!, except in one insljvncc of two. Tlie following
is an interesting field note by Mr. Barnard on the subject: — "Silver-

WHITE-TAILED KINGFISHERS NEST IN ANT HILLOCK.
Fiom a Photo l>y D. Le Soiiv/.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 563

tailed Kingfishers were found breeding both in trees and on the
gi'ound ; sonic of the nests I took were twenty and tliirty feet from
the ground. They seem to have a certain day to stai't breeding, as I
opened ten nests one day and I did not get an egg; five days later
I opened twelve nests and got three fresh eggs out of each nest."
Breeding mouths, November to February. I have given a most
interesting illustration by Mr. Le Souef, showing the mouth of the
Kinsrfisher's tunnel in the white ants' hillock.

Sub-order— Coccyges :— Cuckoos, &c.

FAMILY—CUCULlD.^i : CUCKOOS.

Sub-family — Cuculin^.

449. — CucuLus iNTERMEDius, Vahl — (377)
C. rnnnriiiiles, Miiller.

ORIENTAL CUCKOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. iv., pi. 84.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xix., p. 252.

Previous Description of Eggs. — Hume (Gates' ed.) : Nests and Eggs
Indian Birds, vol. ii., p. 381 (1890).

Geof/rtiphifd! Difitrihutiov . — Queensland; also New Guinea, New
Britain, Malay Archipelago, Indian Peninsula, China, Siberia, and
Japan.

Eggs. — A very perfect elongated oval, a shade narrower at one end.
The ground-colour is pure white, with a slight gloss. 'Die markings,
wliich are evervwhcre ver\' sparse, are somewhat more numerous to-
wards the larger end, and consist of minute specks and tiny lines not
more than '05 inch in length, of dingy olive-brown and very pale inky
purple or purplish-grey. Dimensions, '89 x -6 inch (Hume).

Ohxervatiiina. — The specimens of this fine Cuckoo examined by
Gould were from the northern part of Australia, where they were
killed during the month of January.

No doubt the bird is only a migrant to Australia from Asiatic
regions. It is stated that the black bands on the breast are broader
and more defined than in the Common Cuckoo (C. canorus) of Europe.

In India one of the foster parents of the Oriental or Asiatic
Cuckoo is the Himalayan Streaked Laughing Tiirush (Tr-orhaJopfernm
Imeatmn).

(;64 ^ESTS A^D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

450. — CucuLus PAi.LiDus, L'ltliam. — (378)
PALLID CUCKOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. iv., pi. 85.

Rejerc?ice. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xix., p. 261.

Privious Description of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 462
(1865); Campbell: Southern Scienre Record (1883); also
Victorian Naturalist (1S97).

(TiiKjra iiliinil Dixtriliutiaii . — Whole ol' Australia- and Tasmania,

E(/gx. — Inclined to oval in shape ; texture of shell fine ; surface
glossy ; colour, delicate fleshy tint, darkest on the apex, and here and
there a small reddish or chestnut spot. Dimensions in inches :
(1) 1-4 X -72, (2) -97 X -68, (3) -93 x -7. (Plate 16.)

OJixerimtinn.f. — The plumage of the Pallid, sometimes called
Unadorned, Cuckoo, is easily described, being in general tone brownish,
with the underneath parts light in coloiu-; the long tail is barred with
wliite, the eyes are dark brown and appear largo, encircled with a
yellow eyelash. The bill is slightlj' curved, dark, excejit (he base of
the lower mandible, which is yellow, the gape and inside of the mouth
being also yellowish; feet, olive. Total length, about 12 inches; tail,
6 inches ; bill, ^ inch. In the proper season the Pallid Cuckoo may
be either seen, or heard by its melancholy cry, in nearly every part
of Australia and Tasmania. It may be considered migratory in its
movements ; and, according to the kind of season in certain quarters,
appears in greater or less numbers. For inst^incc, during the periods
of great drought in the interior and Queensland, dccidcdlv more of
these birds visit, say, Victoiia, or the seaboard country.

In the south, the first Pallid Cuckoo of the season is generally
heard about the middle or end of Aiigust or the beginning of Septem-
ber. However these would appear, as far as my observations go, to
be preceded by silent birds of the same species, which may be seen
about the timber or perched on fences or on tclegra])hic wires about
the beginning of August. Why these forerunners should bo silent,
or whether they are all one sex, has not been ascertained.

The first Pallid Cuckoo's egg is deposited in the selected foster-
parent bird's nest about the middle or towards the end of September.
October and November constitute the chief laying time, wliilc a few
birds lay during the beginning of December. When simimcr is ended,
or about the end of March, nil the Pallid Cuckoos — old and their young
— retire northward.

Whether the Pallid Cuckoo lays more than one egg (it probably
does) is not definitely settled, but its single and beautiful flesh-coloured
egg is found in various insectivorous or semi-insectivorous birds' nests
in Queen.sland, a.s well as the southern provinces, including Tasmania.

Among the foster parents, Gould mentions the various Pti/otiK and
Mrlilhrrpfi (Ilonevcaters), but we possess no data to show that he
should have included the Maliiri (Wrens) and Aciiiithi:<r (Tits) for
this particular Cuckoo.

A'ESrS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRAL/AX BIRDS

555

The following is an enumeration of the foster-parents of the Pallid
Cuckoo, as far as are kuown at present, namely; —

Ijv Whom Fiust
Vernacular Name. Scientific Namk. Recorded ur

Reported.

Yellow-eared Honeyealer

White-plumed „

Yellow-tufted

Yellow- faced ,,

Fuscous ,.

Yellow-throated

White-eared

White-uaped

Brown-headed

Black-headed ,,

Strong-billed

Wattle-Bird

Brush Wattle Bird

Spinebill

Friar Bird

iFiner . .

Brown Honeyeater

New Holland Honeyeater

Hooded Robin

Dusky ,, ..

Yellow-breasted Shrike Rob

Oriole

Rufous-breasted Thickhead

White-throated ,,

Black and White Fantail

Brown F'lycatcher

Leaden Flycatcher
Wood Swallow
White-browed Wood-
Swallow
Masked Wood Swallow
White-rumped Wood

Swallow
Grey Shrike Thrush . .
Magpie Lark . .
White-shouldered Calerpil

Catcher

White-fronted Chat ..

Ptilotis lewini .. .. A. J. North.

P. penicillata .. .. A. J.C.

P. auricomis . . . . Dr. l^amsay.

P. chrysops . . . . ,,

P. fusca . . . . . . ,,

P. fiavigularis . . . . A. E. Brent, Tas.

P. leucotis .. .. C. French, jun.

Melithreptus lunulatus Dr. Ramsay

M. brevirostris . . G. E. Shepherd

M. melanocephalus .. A. E. Brent, Tas.

M. validirostris . . . . ,,

Acanthocha-'ra carunculata L Palmer

A. mellivora. . .. .. A. J.C.

Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris A. J. C.

Philemon corniculatus
Myzantha garrula . .
Glycyphila ocularis
Meliornis nova; hollandia;
l-'etroeca bicolor

P. vittata

Eopsaltria australis
Oriolus viridis
Pachycephala rufivenlris . .
P. gulturalis . .
Rhipidura tricolor
Microeca fascinans . .

Myiagra rubecula ..
Artamus sordidus . .

A. superciliosus
A. personatus

Messrs. Barnard, Q.

A. J.C.

Messrs. Barnard, Q.

G. E. Shepherd

J. T. Gillespie

F. H. Reed

Robt. Hall

A. J.C.

Messrs. Brittlebank

H. Lau, g. (Oct.,

1868)
G. E. Shepherd
J. T. Gillespie

A Campbell, jun.
G. E. Shepherd

A. leucogaster . . . . Messrs. Barnard, Q.
CoUyriocincla harmonica.. Messrs. Brittlebank
Grallina picata .. .. J. Sommers

Lalage tricolor
Ephthianura albifrons

G. E. Shepherd and
A J. C.

W. Whhe.

It will appear from the foregoing list of foster-parents of the Pallid
Cuckoo that the Honeyeaters are the most favoured tribe, but in every
case birds that construct an open nest are selected.

To the list must be added the introduced birds, the Greenfinch
(Ligurinus chloris), and Blackbird ( Tardus meruhi), for Mr. Charles
French, jim., writes me; — "An egg of the Pallid Cuckoo was taJien
in the nest of the Greenfinch, at Albert Park (near Melboiu'ne) on the
24th November, 1894. I also found an egg of tlie Pallid Cuckoo some
time ago in the nest of the EngUsh Blackbird, in the same park." I
had heard previously of the Greenfinch being a foster-parent, which is
remarkable, seeing that the Finch is a seed-eater, or nearly so. How-
ever, although the egg is deposited in the Finch's nest, we have no
evidence that it rears the young Cuckoo.

566

A'ESTS A.\D EGGS OV AL ST KALI AX BIRDS.

Among Mr. J. T. Gillespie's Cuckoo notes for 1893, a season when
these birds were plentiful, are the followiug relating to the Palhd
Cuckoo ; — ■

" 2Sth October, at Springvale. — Single egg of Palhd Cuckoo in nest
of Wood Swallow (Artainus son/ id ui J. Saw birds previously building
their nest, which was afterwards apparently deserted.

" 9th November, at Dandenong Creek. — Nest of Lunulated Houey-
eater ( Melithreptus lutiulatus), containing two eggs and an egg of the
Palhd Cuckoo.

" 11th November, at Springvale. — From Hooded Robin's f Pctraca
hicolor) nest (foimd building tlie previous week) took egg of Palhd
Cuckoo.

" 25th November, at Springvale. — In Whitc-plunied Honeyeater's
(Ptilotis penicillataj, one egg and an egg of Pallid Cuckoo.

" 3rd December. — Took Pallid's egg from nest of Greenfinch (intro-
duced bii-d). Finch afterwards laid four eggs.''

At a meeting of the Royal Society of Victoria, held November,
1894, I read the following note on the occurrence of the egg of the
Pallid Cuckoo in the nest of the Magpie Lark (dnill ina) : —

" My friend, Mr. John Sonimers, of Cheltenham, presented me
with a nest taken in the locahty, on the 24th September, 1894, con-
taining a set of five eggs of tlie Grallina, together with an egg of the
Pallid Cuckoo (C. pallului^). This is the first instance, as far as I
am aware, of an egg of this Cuckoo having been found in the nest of
a Grallina. '

In the Cuckoo's egg incubation was fiu'ther advanced than in the
other eggs.

Occasionally two Cuckoos' eggs are found in the same nest. Here
is one of Mr. Charles French, jun.'s notes, thoughtfully sent to me:- —
" White-throated Thickhead's (Pnchi/cephala (/ufturtiH.i) nest, contain-
ing one fresh egg of Tliickhead and two fresh eggs of Pallid Cuckoo.
Locality, Dandenong Ranges. 9tli September, 1895."

Usually it seems that the Cuckoo's egg is the first deposited in the
nest, and not unfrequently before the completion of the nest, as the
finding of a Pallid Cuckoo's egg imdemeath the warm lining of a
White-naped Honeyeater's nest attests. Once Mr. G. E. Shepherd
found the egg of the Pallid Ciickoo sticlring through the bottom of a
White-plumed Honeyeater's nest, the egg being plainly visible from the
ground.

The fact that the Cuckoo, after laying its egg, canies it in its mouth
till deposited in the nest of a foster-bird, is now pra<:tically admitted.
Here is a proof: — The late Mr. H. A. Smith, of Batesford, near
Geelong, informed me that on one occasion he shot a Pallid Cuckoo,
and removed from the back of its throat or gape, an egg, which was
fractured bv the bird'.'! fall. Kvideiitlv the unfortunate bird had laid
the egg. and was in the act of conveying it to some suitable nest.

It is probable that the Pallid Cuckoo lays its egg first upon the
ground, and possibly early in the morning, because that is tlie time
generally when these birds have been flushed from the ground. In
his daylight rambles, Mr. Shepherd has frequently distiu-bcd on the
ground a Cuckoo with su.spicious movements.

A'ESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 3(37

Mr. W. A. MiUigan fm-nished me with the somewhat remarkable
note, that m Gippsland he had observed an adult Palhd Cuckoo feeding
a young bii'd of its own kind. Mr. MiUigan noticed no other birds
about at the time. Miss Ada Fletcher, Tasmania, writing to The
Awtra/iisiaii, 30th May, 1896, states: — "T myself have seen a full-
grown Pallid Cuckoo feechug a young one of the same species. The
young one, when flushed, flew feebly, and I judged it had only recently
left the foster-parents' nest.' These notes suggest interesting questions.
Do Cuckoos sometimes assist the foster-parents in feeding the yoiuigl
or had these particular yoimgsters lost their foster-parents •

I am iuchued to believe that many birds, by instinct, feed young
Cuckoos, whether they be the rightfid foster-parents or not. Only
last season Master B. E. Bardwell watclied a young Cuckoo, probably
a Palhd or else a Fan-tailed, being fed bj' a Scarlet Robin (P. leggii)
and then, immediately, by a Spine-billed Honeyeater. Tlie Uttle
Honeyeater appeared not only to put its long bill, but head also, well
into the mouth of the youthful Cuckoo. It is hardlj' hkely that the
Spinebill was trying to retrieve for itself the bait placed by the Robin
in the throat of the Cuckoo.

With reference to the two last statements, namely, that young
Cuckoos are sometimes fed by old Cuckoos, as well as by birds other
than the proper foster-parents, we have further proof in the pubUshed
remarks of Dr. Ramsay, in New South Wales.

Following the same plan as in the case of the Bronze Cuckoos, the
Messrs. Ramsay succeeded in procuring two young Pallid Cuckoos
from eggs which they (Ramsays) had left in the nest of the Yellow-
tufted Honeyeater (P. auricomisj, and thus first estabhshed the
parentage of the strange eggs.

The Cuckoo's egg is hatched about the twelfth or foiu-teenth day,
when the young Cuckoo — a httle, fat, helpless creature — is scarcely
larger than its foster bretlii-en. However, gi-owing rapidly, it soon
fills up the greater part of the nest, and its unfortunate companions,
either smothered by its weight or starved to death through its greedi-
ness, are thrown out by their parents.

Dr. Ramsay proceeds to say : —

" On the 30th October last (1864), we found two unliappy yoimg
birds, which had been hatched in company with a Cuckoo in a nest of
Pti/iiiit. auricomis, tossed out and lying upon the ground just imder
the nest. These were, of com-se, quite dead, and appeared to have
been about three or four days old.

" Dimng the months of October and November, it is no uncommon
sight to see the smaller birds feeding the young of Cuckoos. Even
the little Acantliizae, which I beheve are never the foster-parents, at
least of the Pallid Cuckoo, join in supplving the wants which are easilv
made knowii by their continued peevish cry, stopping only when being
fed, or when their appetites are appca.sed

" While walking towards home through a half-cleared paddock, I
was not a httle sui-prised, upon hearing the cries of a young Cuckoo,
to see a pair of adult birds of the same species, C. jmUidus, flying after
it, settUng beside it, and apparently paying it gi-eat attention. Several

568

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

times they flew away, but returned to it again, and, from their actions.
I feel convinced tliat they were feeding it, altliougli, much to my
regret, I was unable to obtain a view sufficiently close to wake sui'c
of the fact."

I mav mention, in reference lo the throwing-out busmess, some
persons suppose that the Cuckoo throws out an egg or eggs of the
foster-parent to make room for its own. This has not been proved
with regard to the Palhd Cuckoo — indeed, it has been dispi-oved by
the fact that the Cuckoo's egg is frequently deposited first, or even
before the nest is completed, and that full clutches of the foster-bird's
have been taken together with the Cuckoo's egg. On the other hand,
it is probable that some of the foster-birds throw out Cuckoos' eggs.
When taking a 'White-shouldered Catei-pillar Catcher's (Lahnje triaihjr)
nest at Somerville, with Mr. Shepherd, we found a broken egg of the
Pallid Cuckoo miderneath upon the ground — circumstantial evidence,
I think, that the egg had been deposited by the Cuckoo in the Cater-
pillar Catcher's nest, but Mr. Shepherd has seen a Caterpillar Catcher
feeding a young Palhd Cuckoo.

451. — Cacumantis flabelliformis, Latham. — (379)
FAN-TAILED CUCKOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. iv., pi. 86.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xix., p. 266.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. i., p. 619 (1S65) ; Ramsay: Proc. Zool.
Soc, p. 359 (1865I ; Campbell ; Nests and Kggs .Vustn. Birds,
pi. 2, fig. 379 (1883), also Victorian Naturalist (1897) ; Lucas :
Victorian Naturalist (1884); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., pi. 13,
fig. 7 (18S9).

Gi-(iijnii)liical Distribution. — 'Whole of Australia and Tasmania.

Egyx. — Stout oval in shape ; texture of shell fine ; surface
glossy ; colour, dull white, very minutely freckled with chestnut and
piuplish-brown, and with a distinct band of the same character of
markings round the upper quarter. Dimensions in inches : (1) '86 x -56,
(2) -85 X -62. (Plate 17.) Two eggs from the scrub of the Richmond
River (N.S.W.) arc pearly wliitc, more blotched, with umber and light
pui-plc: (1) -81 x-G, (2) -Sx-SS.

Ohncrvdfioiis. — The Fan-tailed or Ash-coloured Cuckoo is .similar in
figure to the Pallid, but smaller in size. It possesses a dark grey or
slate-coloured coat, with Uic underneath parts brownish, especially
about tho chest. Tail irregularly barred with white. Bill black, except
the base of the lower mandible, which is orange. Eyes dark brown,
surrounded by beautiful eyelashes of citron-yellow; feel ligiit olive.

NESTS A.VD EGGS OE AUSTKALIAN BIRDS.

569

Total length, about 10 inches. The Fan-tailed Cuckoo, like the Pallid
Cuckoo, enjoys a range over Australia and Tasmania, arriving at and
departing from its southern limits about the same time the latter bird
does. However, a few stragglers of the Fan-tailed species remain to
winter in Victoria, as some of niv notes attest. Individuals have also
been obsened in Tasmania during winter.

From about the end of September to the beginning of December
includes the laying season of the Fan-tailed Cuckoo.* The eggs are
almost invariably deposited in domed or covered-in nests of certain
insectivorous birds. But there are a few notable exceptions (four
instances) of open nests having been selected.

Here follows a list of foster-parents of the Fan-tailed Cuckoo known
up to the present, namely: —

Vernacular Name.

Rock Warbler . .

Brown-rumped Tit

Brown

Striated ,,

Little

(?) Buli-rumped ,,

Scrub-Tit

Long-tailed Wren

Blue

Variegated ,,

Brown Scrub Wren . .

White-browed Scrub Wren .

Large-billed Scrub Wren

Little Field Wren

White-eared Honeyeater

Blacli -capped ,,

Wood Swallow.
Dusky Robin .

Scientific Name-

Origma rubricata . .

Acanthiza diemenensis

\. pusilla

A. lineata

A. nana

A. reguloides

Acanthornis magna

Malurus gouldi

M. cyaneus . .

M. lamberti

Sericornis humilib

S. frontalis . .

S. n)agnirostris

Chthonicola sagittata

Ptilotis leucotis

Melithreptus melanocepha-

lus
Artamus sordidus . .
Petroeca vittata

Bv Whom First

Recorded or

Reported.

A. J. North
Rev. H. T. Hull
Dr. E. P. Ramsay

A E. Brent

A. J. C.

Dr E P. Ramsay

A. J. C."

T Brittlebank

A J C.

Dr. E P. Ramsay

C. French, jun.

A.

E. Brent
,, (Nov., '96)

We are indebted to Dr. Ramsay for much original information in
reference to our Cuckoos. He patiently watched their eggs in various
nests, thus enabling him to identify the species when hatched. The
result of his labours, together with coloured plates of four of the most
famihar eggs, may be found embodied in the " Proceedings of the Zoo-
logical Society" (London), 1865 and 1869, from whicli I quote at
length : —

" Among those species, the nests of wliich are favoured by visits
from this 'parasite,' is Acanthiza iJuiiiUa, from a nest of which, in
September, 1863, we took no less than four eggs — two laid by the
rightful owner of the nest, and the other two by Cuckoos. One of
these was a very fine specimen of Chalcites hasiJis, f the other an egg
of the present species, Cacomantis flaheUiforniis. The entrance to this
nest was greatly enlarged, being in width fully two inches, and the hood
which usually conceals the entrance (which is near the top of the nest,

' It is stated that an egg of this Cuckoo has been taken as early as the first
week in August, from a Brown Tit's nest, in the vicinity of Sydney,
t Probably //ligosifs is intended. — A. J. C.

570 NESTS AND hCGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIKDS.

and uot generally wider than one inch across) was pushed back to such
an extent that the eggs were rendered quite visible.

"I have now before me ten nests of the Acanthizce and foiu' of
Maluruthii former comprising Acantliiza liiieata, A. nana, A. pusilla,,
and what at present I beheve to be that of A. reguloides ; the latter,
Mahirus cyaneits and M. lamhfrti.

" Now, having compared the gi-eatly enlarged entrances of those
nests from which we have taken Cuckoos eggs with the entrances of
those wliicli chd uot contain the egg of a Cuckoo, and which we took
as soon as the bird had laid its full number of eggs for a sitting, I can-
not but feel convinced more than ever that the eggs of these pai'asites
are laid iu the nests and not deposited in any other manner.

"The average vridth of the entrances of the nests of Acantliiza
lineatd, wliich have not been visited by a Cuckoo, is one inch, while
those which have contained Cuckoos' eggs vary from two to two-aud-
a-half inches. In addition to the uesbs of Acantliiza iJu^iUa, we have
known tliis Cuckoo (C . flabeUiformis) deposit its eggs in the nest of
A. reyuluide-i (?) and Chthonicola sagittata.''

However valuable are Dr. Ramsay's other notes, I must, iu the
interests of research, combat his idea that the eggs of Cuckoos
are laid in the nests, and not deposited in any other manner. How
can the Fan-tailed Cuckoo, a bird about ten inches long, including a
tail five inches, enter the small covered or dome-shaped nest of, say,
a Tit (Acantliiza), the longest exterior diameter of wluch is only four-
and-a-half inches? The side entrance, that hardly admits of one's
finger, may be enlarged by the Cuckoo thrusting its head in.

In my published remarks, read before the Field Natiualists' Club
of Victoria, 1883, on oui- Cuckoos, I ventured the opinion that oiu"
Cuckoos (particulaiiziug four species), after laying their egg.s some-
where, convey them in their bills to the nest of the chosen foster-parent.
Since then I noticed an interesting article on " The Architectural Tastes
of Birds,'' by M. Oustalet, of France, in wlueh is stated : —

" The Cuckoo watches the moment when the mother quits the nest,
then laying its egg, seizes it by its mandibles, passes it into the throat
with the agility of a conjuroi", and fUes to deposit it delicately in the
stranger's nest."

We also have the statement of another eminent ornithologist, Dr.
Sharpe, of the British Museum, who says : —

" Tlie fact of the Cuckoo carrying her egg in her bill, to deposit it
in the nest of her \'ictim, is now generally admitted. "

If such be possible with the European Cuckoo, why not witli our
Australian species also? The following note received from Mr. Wm.
P. Best, Branxholme, Victoria, is, I tliink, conclusive evidence on the
subject as for as this species is concerned : —

" In the season of 1888, I shot a Fan-tailed Cuckoo. It was almost
the first bird I had seen or heard in the season. On dissection it
proved a specially interesting specimen, as in its ovary 1 found a nearly
perfect egg, and in its gizzard anotiicr ogg. which, though nuich broken,
was evidently an egg of the same species. prob:il)ly of the same bird.
The season was a late one, and the conclusion I drew was, that the

A'ESTS AXD hGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 571

bird had carried the egg about for a considerable time, and, being
unable to find a suitable nest, had simply swallowed it.

By jJermission, I quote the following notes from the diary of the
Rev. H. T. Hull, Tasmajiia: —

" 6th October, 1877. — Found nest of Acanthi:a diemenensis, with
egg of Cacomantii flahelHformis. The three eggs of Acanthiza were
all dented, as if the larger egg had been roughly deposited on the top
of them."

" 15th November. — Found nest of Acanthiza diciiienensis, two eggs
broken, with yoimg far advanced, but dead ; fresh egg of Cuckoo
(fla hell ifti rm i" }.'

During my own visit to Tasmania, October, 1883, the overseer at
Ridgeside brought imder my notice a nest of tlie Tasmaiiian Tit
( Acanthiza J, in a gorse hedge, from which he had just abstracted the
egg of the Fan-tailed Cuckoo. The building of the nest had apparently
just been completed, and was used iirst by the Cuckoo. And, strange
to relate, although the entrance of the nest was enlarged by the over-
seer to abstract the Cuckoo's egg, the enlargement did not offend the
httle Tit, because three days afterwards she laid her first egg, and my
subsequent visits to tlie nest proved that she finished her com-
plement.

Another note I made on the mainland during an excursion of the
Field Naturalists' Club, reads thus :—" 15.10.92— Wandong.— Egg of
Fan-tailed Cuckoo in Tit's (Acanthiza ) nest, witli one egg of the Tit.
Eggs could be seen from outside. Evidently the entrance had been
somewhat enlarged, jxissibly by the head of the Cuckoo, when deposit-
ing the egg."

The following letter appeared in the Victorian XaturaJist, December,
1891, above the name of C. French, jun. ; —

" A friend of mine, living near Oakleigh, informs me that one day,
when out collecting, he came across a nest of the White-eared Honey-
eater (P. Icucotis j, ready for eggs, and on \'isiting the same nest the
following day, it contained an egg of the PalHd Cuckoo (C . pallidus),
which he left, thinking the Honeyeater would lay shortly ; but on his
retm-n the third day, he found that the egg of the Palhd Cuckoo had
been thrown out of the nesti by the Fan-tailed Cuckoo (C. ftaheUiformis),
and she had laid an egg in tlie nest. The Honeyeater deserted the
nest. This is the second time mv friend has noticed this same pro-
ceeding."

This is an exceedingly interesting note, for i-arely does the Fan-tailed
Cuckoo deposit its egg in an open nest. However, three other instances
were observed by Mr. A. E. Brent, Tasmania, where the Fan-tailed
Cuckoo is particularly partial to the covered nests of the Scrub Wren
fS. hit mil is). They occun-ed respectively in the open nests of the
Black-capped Honeyeater (3f. melaiiorephfilKK ), the Duskv Robin
(P. vittata). and the" Wood Swallow (A. >:ordiJiiK).

In Tasmania, a fresh egg of the Fan-tailed Cuckoo was found
deposited on a bare stump. Doubtless it had been laid there by the
bird, which was probably disturbed before it could convey it away to
some suitable nest.

57^

A'ESTS AXD tGGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

This Cuckoo, as shown in Dr. Ramsay's statement, has been known
to deposit its egg in a nest containing other species of Cuckoos' eggs.
Here is a couplet from Mr. Brent's Tasmanian field notes, which he
kindly fiu-nishcd me with : — " I liad the exceptionally good fortune
to find a nest of our httle Browntail ( Acanthiza), containing two eggs
of the parent bird, together with one cg^ each of the Fan-tailed,
Bronze, and Narrow-billed Bronze Cuckoos — a nice lot, and all fresh."

" In December last (1895) we came across a nest of the httle Brown-
tail, in some short bushes, containing two eggs of the Acanthiza and
one of the Bronze Cuckoo. Having nothing to carry them home in,
we left them for three days, and upon retui'uiug for them we found the
nest contained only one Acauthiza's egg, one Bronze Cuckoo's, and also
one Fan-tailed Cuckoo's; the other shell of the Acauthiza's egg we
picked up jvist outside of the nest."

Since compiling my list of foster-parents for the Fan-tailed Cuckoo,
Mr. C. C. Brittlebank informs me he noticed a fully -fledged young one
swelling out the open nest of a Rufous-breasted Thickhead, and that
he saw a Yellow-rumped Tit ( Aanithiza) and Yellow-faced Honcyeater
(P. chrysoj)s), both feeding a young Cuckoo.

452. — Cacomantis vakioloscs, Horsfield. — (380)
C. i/isperatus, Gould.
C dumeturum, Gould.

SQUARE-TAILED CUCKOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. iv., pi. Hy.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xix., p. 272.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs.- — Hurst : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales,
vol. iii., 2nd 'ier., p. 421 (1888) ; North : Rec. Austn. Mus.
vol. ii., p. t5 (1892) ; Campbell : Victorian Naturalist (1S9S).

Gedjjriipliicri/ Di.^l rihiii ion. — Australia in general; also Timor and
Molucca Islands.

Egy-'i. — Stout oval in shape ; bextiu'e of shell fine ; surface glossy ;
colour, dull or pearly-white, with a band of blotched and spotted
markings of umber and purplish-grey round the upper quarter.
Altogether tiie egg is suggestive of those of the Afi/iayra type of Fly-
catcher.s. Dimensions: (1) -75 x "G, (2) -72 x -57, (3) -71 x -54.
(Plate 17.)

Observations. — There has been some little confusion about tiie
identity of the Square-tailed Cuckoo (Curuhis variulmn.'i, Horsf.^ It
now appears that both Gould's C. insperdtiix and C dumitiirvrn are
none otiicr than the original C. variolusw! of Dr. llorsficld, therefore
the bird, in the season, ranges over Australia, liiiiiuing out in uiuubere
as the southern seaboard is appi'oached.

NESTS AND FOGS OF AVSTFALIAN BIRDS. t;^^

At first siglit, this Cuckoo ma)' be easily mistaken for tlio familiar
Fan-tailed Cuckoo (C . flahcUiformis), but differs from that bird by its
decidedly smaller size and more square-shaped tail, which is also
destitute of the white markings on the outer webs of the feathers.

The Square-tailed, or, as it has been more commonly called, the
Brush Cuckoo, may also be recognised by its peculiar song — a few
melancholy, jerky notes, ending abniptly, as if the strain were suddenly
intcriTipted, or the songster had received some kind of a shock, in the
middle of its song.

Dr. T. P. Lucas was the first collector who discovered this strange
Cuckoo's cgg^, which lie took when in company with his brother
Mr. A. H. S. Lucas, from the nest of the AVliite-shafted Fantail, near
Box Hill, Victoria, New Year's Day, 1884. But Dr. Lucas, unfortu-
nately, discounted liis discovery by describing the strange egg as that
of the Black-eared Cuckoo ( M ixrncnlinx paJlinlafiis), see "Victorian
Naturalist," Pebnxary, 1884.

In the P.L.S.. N.S.W., 1888 (vol. iii., 2nd series, p. 421) Dr. G.
Hurst drew attention to, and described, a similar strange egg he had
found on the 22nd December, 1887, in a nest of the Blue Wren
(Miihtrux ri/fiiieus), and attributed to the Brush or Square-tailed
C\ickoo. At the same time he mentioned that a friend- — Mr. Waterhouse
— had on three occasions taken similar eggs from the nest of the White-
shafted Fantail. In the " Records of the Australian Museum," Mr. A.
J. North states that Dr. Hurst had again found other eggs in the
nests of the White-shafted Fantail, notably in the month of December;
while another Sydney collector, Mr. S. W. Moore, M.L.A., also found
the same species of Cuckoo's eggs in the nest of the Yellow-faced
Honeyeater (P. rhri/najix). Mr. North proceeds to remark: — "All
these Cuckoos' eggs were obtained within a radius of ten miles of
Sydney, and it is a matter of regret that the opportimity was not taken
of placing them in nostc convenient for observation, and hatching the
young out, as was done by Dr. Ramsay and his brothers, at Dobroyde,
with the eggs of C. pallidum, C. flaheUiformis. L. plago.nis, and L.
hnmJis, so as to conclusively determine to which species they belong;
but there can be no doubt Dr. Hurst was right in ascribing the eggs
obtained by him and his friends to C. insperatus (i.e., variolosus), as
it is the only other species of Cuckoo, foixnd near Sydney, the eggs of
which we were, until then, unacquainted with."

However, Mr. Dudley Le Souef, with the assistance of his friend
Mr. R. Hislop, knocked the nail on the head by settling the parentage
of these strange eggs beyond doubt. During his trip to the Cooktown
district (Queensland), on the 17th November, 1896, he found one in
the nest of the Dusky or Brown-backed Honeyeater (Glyryphiln
77io(lexin). Mr. Hislop aftei-wards found another nest of the Honey-
eater containing the Cuckoo's egg, which was " shepherded " till the
yoimg parasite was hatched and just able to flv. The interesting
yoimgster was sent (dead, of course) to Mr. Le Souef, who in turn
referred it to the Australian Museum, the verdict being that it was
the young of the C. varinlnsus.

574

NESTS AND EGGS OF AV ST KALI AN BIRDS.

When in New South Wales, recently, I had the pleasure of examin-
ing some of these new eggs in the collection of Mr. S. W. Moore, at
Homcbush ; in fact, he kindly presented me with one, together with
tlic jsair of Wliite-shaftod Fantail's taken from the same nest. Mr.
Moore foimd, or wa^ present at the finding of, the following nests con-
taining eggs of the Square-tailed Cuckoo; — At Haslcms Cieek, about
ten miles from Sydney, Yellow-faced Honeyeater, date, 4th December,
1891 ; at Eastwood, thirteen miles from Sydney, White-shafted
Fantail (two nests), date 26th December, 1891 ; ditto 9th December,
1893; cUtto 16th December, 1893.

Further interesting finds were made in Victorian forests. During
October, 1897, Mr. G. E. Shepherd found the Cuckoo's egg with two
eggs of the Scarlet-breasted Robin, and Mr. J. Gabriel took another,
together with a pretty set of the Rose-breasted Robin's, in December
last year (1897).

My son Archie has handed me the following note : — " 31st Decem-
ber, 1896. — Observed a pair of Scarlet Robins feeding a fully-flcdged
Brush Cuckoo, which was perched on the naked branch of a tree, near
Bayswater. Both male and female Robins were tending it. After
darting to deposit food in the Cuckoo's mouth, the little Robins would,
alternately, always sit on the branch, a foot or two away, for sevei-al
seconds, as if seriously contemplating the importance of their charge,
before flying off again. "

Mr. Shepherd has observed, on the Mornington Peninsula, that the
Square-tailed Cuckoo is decidedly rare and shy, and seems partial to
secluded spots. In this last respect it resembles the Fan-tailed Cuckoo.

List, to date, of the known foster-parents of the Square-tailed
Cuckoo : —

Vernacular Name.

Blue Wren . .
Brown Flycatcher
White-shafted Fantail
Yellow-faced Honeyeater
Brown-backed Honeyeater

Shrike Tit

Scarlet-breasted Robin
Rose-breasted Robin

Scientific Name.

Malurus cyaneus
Micrceca fascinans
Rhipidura albiscapa
Ptilotis chrysops
Glycyphila modesta . .
Falcunculus frontatus
PetrcEca leggii . .
P. rosea. .

Hv Whom First

Recorded or

Reported.

Dr. G. Hurst
Keartland — Ryan
Hurst — Waterhotise
North — Moore
n. Le Souef
G. A. Keartland
G. E. Shepherd
J. Gabriel

453. — Cacomantis castaneiventris, Gould.
CHESTNUT-BREASTED CUCKOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., supp., pi. 55.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xix., p. 274.

G<iii/r<i iihiml Dixfrihufinn. — Northern Torrilory (probably) rind
Norlli Queensland ; also New Ouiiicn .-iiid Avu Islands.

\'ESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 575

Eggs. — Undesci-ibed.*

Oh.ier vat ions. — This fine Cuckoo of northern forests is most nearly
allied to the familiar Fan-tailed Cuckoo fC. f/abel/ifornii.^J, but differs
in its smaller size, and in the unifonn rich chestnut coloiuing of
its under-surface, from which it derives its distinctive name, Chestnut-
breasted.

Referring to the Chestnut-breasted Cuckoo, and writing to the
•• Ibis," p. H62 (1899), Mr. D. Le Souef states : " This bird I saw on many
occasions on the Bloomfield River, near Cooktown, and often heard it
uttering its mouraful note during the night. I have also noticed it
flying among the bushes, evidently hunting for nests. I never saw or
heard the Fan-tailed Cuckoo fC. flaheJliformis) in the district. Mr. R.
Hislop has sent me a clutch of eggs of Sericurnis magnirostris, in which
was deposited the egg of a Cuckoo, which I h,ave little doubt was laid
by C. castane.iveiitris."

454. — MisrocALius PALLIOLATUS, Latham. — (382)
M. osculans, Gould.

BLACK-EARED CUCKOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. iv., pi. S8.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xix., p. 279.

Previozl.' Descriptions of Eggs. — North : Report Horn Scientific Expe-
dition, .\ves, p. 65 (1896) ; Campbell : Victorian Naturali.st
(1898).

Gengraphical Distrihiition. — Aiistralia in general; also Am. Ke,
and Batchian Islands.

Eggs. — Long oval in shape ; texture of shell fine ; surface glossy ;
coloiu', nearly a imiform shade of reddish-chocolate. Dimensions :
(1) -87 X -57. (2) -8 X -69. (3) -88 x -63.

Observations. — The Black-eared Cuckoo is a larger and more robust
bird than any of the Bronze Cuckoos, and also differs from them in
colouration.

Gould himself shot two in New South Wales, 1839, received one
from GUbert, who obtained it in Western Australia, and two from other
collectors.

* A supposed egg, provisionally described by Mr. D. Le .Souef, is : " Colour,
white, with minute freckles of a brownish tint rather sparsely scattered over the
egg, forming a light zone at the larger end. It is nearly oval in shape, and
measures -S:; x '58 inches."

c;76 .VESTS AND EGGS OE AVSTRAEJAN BIRDS.

As Gilbert observes, the Black-eared Cuckoo is vci-y shv, and is
usually met with in the interior of the provinces. It utters a feeble,
lengthened, and somewhat plaintive note, at long intervals. It flies
slowly and heavily, and for short distances at a time.

The only one I happened to notice in a state of nature was an early
bird, seen " sneaking " about a native pine scrub, near Echuca, Victoria,
28th July, 1894.

On circvunstantial evidence, there is no doubt that the egg
received from Central Australia, by Mr. G. A. Keartland, and described
by Mr. A. J. North, is referable to the Black-eared Cuckoo. Mr. C. E.
Cowle was instioimental in securing this type-egg, wliich was found with
a clutch of Tit's ( Acanthiza). I believe a similar egg has since been
found in the nest of the Red Throat (Piirrholamun), while Mr. James
Kershaw exhibited at the Field Naturalists' Club, on the 13th Jiuie,
1898, an egg taken in the Wimmera district from the nest of the White
Face ( Xeroijhila).

455. — Chalcococcyx bas.\lis, Horsfield. — (385)
NARROW-BILLED BRONZE CUCKOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. iv., pi. 8q, lower figure.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xix., p. 294.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Zool. See, p. ;)5g
(1869); Campbell: Southern .Science Record (1883); North:
Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 247, pi. 13, fig. 13 (1SS9); Campbell:
Victorian Naturalist {1898).

Gei)fir<i jihiriit Dix/rlhiitiuti . — Whole of Austmlia and Tasmania ; also
Aru Lslands, Timor, Flores, Lombock, Java and Malacca.

JHyi/s. — Elliptical in form ; texture of shell fine ; surface sliglitly
glossy ; colour, pinkish-white, minutely freckled, or spotted all over with
pinkish-rod. Dimensions in inches: (1) .74 x -52, (2) •72x-51.
(3) -Tx-B. (Plate 17.)

Observations. — The Narrow-billed Bronze Cuckoo is also found
throughout Australia, inclucUng Tasmania.

The arrival of this bird in soutliern parts is concurrent with tlie
tide of the other Cuckoos, its laying season connncncing about the end
of September, and continuing into December. There is a noteworthy
fact in connection with the two common Bronze Cuckoos frequenting
the southern parts of Australia. The one that lays the olive or bronze-
coloured egg, invariably, or with few exceptions, deposits its burden in
dome-shaped or covered nests, while the Narrow-billed (the species now
imdcr notice) chooses either dome-shaped or open, cup-shaped nests as
receptacles ff)r its red-speckled egg.

NESTS AMD EGGS OF AVSTKAUAN BIRDS.

577

As far as my data go, tlie following species are among the foster-
birds of the Narrow-billed Bronze Cuckoo : —

Vernacular Name.

White-shafted Fantail
Blue Wren
Long-tailed Wren
Orange-backed ,,
Red-backed
Black-backed ,,
White-winged ,,
Yellow rumped Tit
Bufl-rumped ,,
Brown-rumped (Tasmanian)

Tit

Striated Tit

Little

Brown ,,

Scarlet-breasted Robin

Red-capped ....

White-browed Scrub Wren . .

Yellow-throated

Large-billed

Short-billed Tree Tit . .

Grass Warbler . .

White-fronted Bush Chat

Tricoloured

Little Field Wren

Striated Field Wren . .

White I'ace

New Holland Hoiieyeater

White-cheeked ,,

White Eye

Red-browed Finch
Orange- winged T'ee Runner.
Emu Wren
Southern Fly Eater
Chestnut-eared Finch . .

Scientific Namk.

Rhipidura albiscapa
Malurus cyaneus . .
M. gouldi . .
M. melanocephalus
M. dorsalis
M. melanotus
M. leucopterus
Acanthiza chrysorrhoea
.\ reguloides

By whom First

Recorded or

Reported.

G. E. Shepherd

E. P. Ramsay

Gould

H. Barnard

G. A. Heartland

A, j. North

A J.C.

E. P Ramsay

A diemenensis
A lineata
A nana
A. pusilla
Petra-ca leggii
P goodenovii
Sericornis frontalis
S. citreogularis
S. magnirostris
Smicrornis brevirostris . .
Cisticola ruficeps . .
Ephthianura albifrons
E. tricolor ..
Chthonicola sagittata
Calamanthus fuliginosus

Xerophila leucopsis
Meliornis novas-hollandia'
M. sericea . .
Zosterops coerulescens
-i-Egintha temporalis
S. chrysoptera
Stipiturus malachurus ..
Gerygone culicivora
T. castanotis

Gould

A y. North

E. P. Ramsay

A J. North

A J. C.

A. J.C. (Kent Group)

Hermann Lau

A. J. North

G. A, Keartland

J. T. Gillespie

T. Carter

R. Hall

C. French, jun and

party
R. Hall
A, ] North
E P. Rams.iy
A. J. North
E. Cornwall
G. E. Shepherd
Campbell-Shepherd
A. G. Campbell
Hall-Cameron

The instance of the egg of this Cuckoo being found in the nest of
the Tricoloured Chat, in Western Australia, is of additional interest
from the fact that it was taken on the 5th March (1898), — a most
unusual month.

It is rare to find two species of Cuckoo in the same foster-bird's
nest. Once I found a nest of the Tit ( Acanthi-.n chrt/xorrliad ), con-
taining three eggs, besides an egg each of the two Bronze Cuckoos. If
these two lively youngsters had been hatched, I suppose it woidd have
been a case of " the survival of the fittest." However, Dr. Ramsay can
go one better. In 1856, from a nest of the Little Tit (Acanthiza nana),
he took no less than six eggs — three belonging to the Tit, and three to
the Bronze Cvickoos — two of C. phiyot^ux, and one of C . haxulis.

As we saw in om- observations on the Fan-tailed Cuckoo, Mr. A. E.
Brent can score one higher still as far a.s Cuckoos' eggs are concerned,
for, in a httle Tasmanian Tit's (Acanthiza) nest, he took the eggs of no
less than three species — namely, the Fan-tailed, Bronze, and Narrow-
billed Bronze Cuckoos.
37

5^8 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Exceptions always seem to prove the rule. Cuckoos, being insec-
tivorous, usually deposit their eggs in the nest of a bird used to a similar
diet. But here we have a partly graminivorous bird chosen as a foster-
parent. Mr. Ed. Cornwall related to me how he once found a Finch's
nest containing the fresh egg of the Nai'row-billed Cuckoo. But the
strange part of the affair was, that the nest also contained the body of
the Finch, which aiDparcntly had been dead some weeks.

To Messrs. Brittlebajik I am indebted for first-hand information
relating to many of the foster-parents of various Cuckoos. I was
present with them at one of our enjoyable outings at the Werribee
Gorge, 11th October, 1890, when we foimd the egg of a Narrow-billed
Cuckoo in the nest of the New Holland Honeyeater. During the
visit of the expedition of the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria,
November, 1890, to the Kent Group, we discovered for the first time
the egg of the Narrow-billed Cuckoo in the nest of the Wliite-fronted
Sciiib Wren fSericoriiif! frontal in J.'^

As in the case of the other Bronze Cuckoo, two eggs of the Narrow-
billed are occasionally taken in one nest. Here is a curious note from
Mr. G. E. Shcj^hcrd. At Somerville, 1896, he twice took a Blue
Wren's nest containing a clutch of two eggs, together with a Narrow-
billed Bronze Cuckoo's egg, and on examination a second Cuckoo's egg
was found embedded in the grassy material of the nest.

That Cuckoos sometimes deposit their eggs in the foster-bird's nest
before its consti-uction is complete is again illustrated by the fact, that,
after removing a pretty clutch of eggs from a Blue Wren's nest, I
discovered between the grassy folds of the nest the well-known, red
speckled egg of the Narrow-billed Cuckoo.

Bcaiing on this point, I possess further evidence from Mr. Wm. P.
Best, Bi-anxholme, who wrote some time ago : — " I am of opinion that
occasionally the Broad-billed Bronze Cuckoo deposits its egg in the
Acanthiza's nest before that bird has laid its eggs, and that, when this
happens, the Acanthiza covers the strange egg with a thick layer of
feathers. I have found several Cuckoos' eggs thus covered with a
dense layer of feathers ; in every instance the lining of the nest has
been mucli in excess of what is usually found. It also seems to me
that the Cuckoo's egg hatches in somewhat less time than the other
eggs in the nest. I have been unable to verify tliis, however. What
I have noticed is, that in nests where a Cuckoo's egg is foiuid that egg
is always in a more forward state of incubation than the others, and
where I have foimd a young Cuckoo there have (or nearly) always been
eggs broken (not yoimg birds) under the nest."

It will be observed that the eggs of the two little Bronze Cuckoos
fC plagosus and C. basalts) are totally dissimilar in colouring, not-
withstanding that the respective reputed parents are almost exactly
alike, both in colour and size. Both wear coats of glorious golden-
green. TIio Narrow-billed may be di.stingiiished, as its name implies,
by its slightly smaller and narrower liill, more mottled plumage
on the throat and chest — not so barred as in the other variety — and
by several (six) of the tail feathers being rufous or chestnut-coloured

• S. gularis, Legge, Victorian Naturalist, 1896.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

S79

at their base. The young of both species, on leaving the nest, are
hardly to be separated from each other, but at about three months
old they possess the same characteristic markings as their parents. It
would be of gi-eat interest if some of our oologists could explain the
apparent anomaly in the coloiu-ation of the eggs, for experience teaches
us, that, in nearly eveiy genus, the true typical egg of each species is
not without characteristic resemblance.

With reference to the supposed ousting by the young Cuckoo of
its foster brethren, I do not think it applies in all cases, if at all;
because if we consider, say, the Pallid and Fan-tail Cuckoos, and their
rapid gi-owth in size, compared with that of the smaller foster-family, the
latter would be soon crushed or starved out of existence ; moreover
the nest could not contain them all. In any case, there appears an
all-wise provision in the plans of the Creator for the maintenance of
their (the Cuckoo) species, for it may be readily imderstood that it
occupies the whole time of a pair of tiny foster-parents to satiate the
rapacious maw of their large foster-chick, without being encumbered
with a brood of their own offspring.

Mr. J. C. Goudie, Birchip, sent the following valuable note to the
" Victorian Natiu-alist " respecting the ejectment, by this Cuckoo, of its
foster-brethren :■ — " On the 5th of November, 1897, a nest of the White-
fronted Ephtliianura (E. alhifrons) was noticed, containing a clutch
of tlu'ee eggs of the rightful owner, and an egg of the NaiTow-billed
Bronze Cuckoo. Between the 5tli and 8th, one of the Ephthianura's
and the Cuckoo's egg were hatched, and the difference in size was at
once noticeable, the usui-per being half as large again as its nest-mate.
By the 8th inst., the two remaining eggs had been thrown out, and the
same day I was fortimate enough to witness a determined attempt on
the part of the young Cuckoo to eject its smaller companion. First
of all it assT.med an upright sitting posture, then wriggled and shuiHed
about until it managed to get the young Ephtliianura fairly on to its
(the Cuckoo's) back ; it then rose on tip-toe, with its back to the side
of the nest, and, spreading its wings and using them as anns to keep
its load in position, it endeavoured, by a series of violent upward jerks,
to force the latter out of the nest. On this occasion it was not equal
to the task, and, after a protracted struggle, gave it up. However, by
the evening of the next day it had accomplished its pui-pose, and rested
in undisputed possession. A more remarkable exhibition of instinct I
have never seen — more remarkable from the fact that the bird was
practically just out of the egg, blind, and seemingly helpless."

ego NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

456. — Chalcococcyx lucidus, Gmelin.
BROAD-BILLED BRONZE CUCKOO.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xix., p. 295.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Potts : Trans. New Zealand Inst., vol.
ii., p. 65 (1S70); Buller: Birds of New Zealand, vol. i., p. 83
(1888).

Geographical Distribution. — Australia (Eastern) and Tasmania, also

New Zealand, Chatham Islands, and Macqnaric Island (accidental).

E(/!/>:. — Similar to that of C. jihi(/o.<ii.<. It has been described by
Sir Walter Buller as "of a broad ovato-clliptical form, generally
greenish-white or very pale olive colour, often clouded, or stained with
brownish grey." Another is, " rather more elliptical in form, and of
a uniform olivaceous brown." Dimensions in inches: (1) -8 x -5,
(2) -Tx-S.

Observations. — There has also been .some confusion about the iden-
tity and nomenclature of the various Bronze Cuckoos, and more
particularly those that wander to the southern parts of Australia.
Gould, after examination, concluded that the New Zealand bird, to
wliich the specific name furidiis was applied, was identic<il with ba.':a/ix.
But, seeing the egg of the New Zealand bird is bronze, while the other
is red-speckled, Gould's deductions do not hold.

Dr. Ramsay says : — " Most ornithologists agree in considering
C. plagosus and G. basalts distinct species, and C. lucidus, from New
Zealand, as a third;" while the British Museum Catalogue shows that
G. lucidus is the New Zealand race of C. plagosus, with a range of
habitat down Eastern Australia.

On the i!5th November, 1898, Mr. J. R. Burton infonns me, a
Shining Cuckoo was observed on Macquarie Island, which is situate
about 600 miles south-west of New Zealand. Tliis is probably the most
southern " record " for any Cvickoo. The bird was perched amongst the
rocks, and was apparently in a fatigued condition.

A specimen of G. lucidus, or the Broad-billed Bronze Cuckoo, t.aken
in Tasmania, and exhibited in the Australian Museum, Sydney, has
a more bronzy-brown appearance than the other two varieties, but, like
G. basnlis, has chestnut markings on the tail feathers. However, this
third southern variety of Bronze Cuckoo needs inquiring into by field
workers, and may possibly lay in some Australian birds' nests.

I give a few remarks on the Broad-billed Bronze Cuckoo in its New
Zealand habitat, where it is called the Shining Ciickoo. According to
Sir Walter Buller, it arrives in the north part of the country during
September. At Wellington, it was observed, from a record kept for
ten years, to arrive between 5th and 10th October. Tlie Cuckoos
commence to depart about the middle of January, and most are gone
by the end of that month. Other obsei-vers have noticed the birds in
February and March.

N£StS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 581

Sir Walter Buller proceeds to remark : — " Its cry is a remarkable
one, as the bii-d appears to be endowed wth a peculiar kind of ven-
triloquism. It consists of eight or ten long silveiy notes, quickly
repeated. Tiie first of these appears to come from a considerable dis-
tance ; each successive one brings the voice nearer, till it issues from
the spot where the perfoniier is actually perched, perhaps only a few
yai-ds off. It generally winds up with a confused strain of joyous notes,
accompanied by a stretching and quivering of the wings, expressive,
it would seem, of the liighest ecstasy. The ciy of the yoimg birds is

easily distinguished, being very weak and plaintive As it

is usual to fkid the Cuckoo's egg associated with those of the Grey
Warbler, we may reasonably infer that the visitor simply deposits its
egg for incubation, without displacing the existing ones. But the
young Cuckoo is generally found to be the sole tenant of the nest ;
and the following circumstance, related to me by the Rev. R. Taylor,
sufficiently proves that the intruder ejects the rightful occupants, and
takes entire possession. He discovered the nest of a Grey Warbler
in liis garden shrubbery, containing several eggs, and among them a
larger one, which he con-ectly assigned to the Sliining Cuckoo. In due
time the eggs were hatched ; but, after the lapse of a day or two, the
young Cuckoo was the sole tenant of the nest, and the dead bodies of
the others were found lying on the ground below. At length the
usurper left the nest, and for many days after both of the foster-parents
were incessantly on the wing, from morning till night, catering for the
inordinate appetite of their charge, whose constant piping cry served
only to stimulate their activity."

The following interesting data respecting the early history of the
Broad-billed Bronze Cuckoo were fviniished to Sir Walter Buller by a
con-espondent, Mr. W. W. Smith, of Oamaru. On the 7th October,
a Warbler's (Qerygone) nest was found, containing foiu: eggs and one
of the Cuckoo. 21st. — ^The batch still imhatched. 24th.- — Two young
were hatched ; one egg upon the groimd contained chick, cold and
dead. 25th.- — Tkree young in nest. 26th, — Cuckoo's eg^ hatched.
30th. — One dead chick foimd on the ground ; young Cuckoo gi'owing
rapidly, nearly large enough to fill the nest itself. 2nd November. —
One of the yoimg Warblers dead in the nest. 6th.— Yotmg Cuckoo
lying with its head on the opening of nest, having taken full possession,
its remaining companion being underneath it, having apparently died
from starvation. 8th. — Young Cuckoo almost ready to leave its cradle.
15th. — Came out of the nest.

The following have been recorded as foster-parents of the Broad-
billed or Shining Cuckoo, in New Zealand, namely : — Grey Warbler
(diriiyoiic flanreiifris — the usual victim, (Geri/(/(ine alhafrijutdfn ) ;
South Island Tomtit (Myiomoira macrocephala) ; Bell Bird or Kori-
mako (Anthornia melanura ) ; White Eye ( Zosterops ccerulescens) ; and
the introduced House Sparrow.

The late Mr. T. H. Potts, regarding his ob.scrvations of this Cuckoo,
has mentioned sixteen instances of its eggs being found in the nests of
Warblers, between the 28th October and 6th January — the Umits
probably of the laying season of the Cuckoo in New Zealand.

582 NBSrS AND EGGS OF AVSTRAUAN BIRDS.

457. — Chalcococcyx plagosus, Latham. — (383)
BRONZE CUCKOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, vol. iv., pi. 8g, centre figure.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xix., p. 297.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. i., p. bi^ (1865) ; Ramsay : Proc. Zool. See, p. 460
(1865), also p. 35y (iSOy) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., app.,
pi. g, fig. 13 -(1889) ; Campbell; Victorian Naturalist (1S9S).

GetKjrdiihical Dixtrihutidii. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania;
also Southeru New Guinea and the adjacent Islands, to the Solomon
Archipelago.

Eijijs. — Elliptical in form ; texture of shell fine ; surface glossy ;
colour, of a imiform bronzy or olive shade. The bronze colour may
be readily removed by moisttire, which reveals a light bluish shell.
Dimensions in inches ; (1) -74 x -51, (2) -72 x -52, (3) -69 x -51. (Plate 17.)

Ohservdtidns. — So much alike are the various species of beautiful
Bronze Cuckoos that great care is needed to discriminate between them.
The Bronze Cuckoo has a resplendent coat of rich greenish bronze.
The underneath parts are beautifully striped, in zebra fashion, with the
same beautiful bronze tint. Eyes, bill and feet, brownish. Total
length, about 6 inches. The familiar Bronze Cuckoo (its egg also being
bronze-coloured) is migratory over the whole of Australia and Tasmania.*

The whistling note of the Bronze Cuckoo is, in the vicinity of
Melbourne, usually lirst heard in August. I have a record one year
when I heard this bird as early as the 3rd of that month. Of course
the majority of these CUckoos arrive during September, a few laying by
the end of that month, while the general laying season includes the
mouths of October, November, and December.

In selecting a foster-parent for its ofFspring, the beautiful Bronze
Cuckoo generally chooses the covered-in nests of the Ac<iiithiz<r (Tits)
tribe, but other sjiecies of dome-shaped or secluded nests are chosen,
while I have a record of only four instances where open nests were
selected. The following is tlie hst of foster-birds known : —

By whom I'ir.st

Vernacular Name. •

Scientific Name.

Recorded or
Rei'ohted.

Yellow-rumped Tit ..

Acanthiza chrysorrha-a

. . Gould

Buff-rumped

. . A. reguloides . .

E P Ramsay

Brown ,.

A. pusilla

• 1

Striated

. . A. lineata

Little

. . A. nana

Brown-runipcd ..

. . A. diemenensis

.. Gould"

Broad-tailed

.. A. apicalis

.. A. J.C.

Banded Wren

Malurus splendens

. . Gould

Blue

M. cyaneus

,.

Turquoise,,

.. M. callainus ..

. . K Hall

'In the Gascoync district (Western .Australia), Mr. Tuni Carter stales he has
seen olive-coloured eggs of Cuckoos, in various nests, as early as July.

iV^Srs AND hOGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

5^3

Vkrnaculak Namk.

Grass Warbler . .
Yellow-throated Scrub Wren
Large-billed ,,

White-throated Fly Eater . .
Brown ,,

Ked-browed Finch
Brown Tree Creeper . .
'Short-billed Tree Tit
•Emu Wreu . .
Scarlet-breasted Kobin
White-fronted 13ush Chat
Orange-winged Tree Runner
Yellow-faced Honeyeater
Fulvous-fronted
Long-billed
Chestnut-rumped Tit
Red-capped Robin

Scientific Name.

Cisticola exilis
Sericornis citreogularis
S. magnirostris
Gerygone albigularis . .
G. tusca

Aigintha temporalis . .
Climacteris scandens
Sraicrornis brevirostns
Stipiturus malachurus
Petrceca leggii . .
Ephthianura albifrons
Sittella chrysoptera . .
Ptilotis chrysops
Glycyphila fulvifrons
Meliornis longirostns
Acanthiza uropygiahs
Petroeca goodenovi . .

By whom First

Kecokded or

Rei'okieu.

Hall-Kearlland

. A J. C.

. H. Lau

. H. Barnard

. A. J.C.

. A. J. North
G. Bateman
E. P. Kamsay

: A.j.c'j

J. Sommers
G. E. Shepherd
, R. Hall
J. W. Mellor
D. Le Souef
R. Hall

To the foregoing list may be added that troublesome introduction,
the House Sparrow, an apparently deserted nest having been taken
near Warruambool, which contained an addled egg of the Bronze
Cuckoo — date Christmas, 1893. One November, my son Archie
observed a Sparrow chasing a Cuckoo from the verandah of oiu' house,
where Sparrows were nesting. The strange egg has also been seen in
the nest of the Goldfinch (iutroduced).

The Tree Creeper (U/imacterisJ, as a foster-bird, is mentioned on
the evidence of the late Mr. Giltx:rt Bateman, a tra23per, whose sus-
picious were aroused by seeing a Bronze Cuckoo emerging from a hole
in a tree. An examination proved that the Cuckoo had dejjosited its
egg among the rich, led-coloured clutch of the Tree Creeper. The nest
was not far dowUj and could be seen from the entrance of the hole.

Wlule ia the " Big Sciiib," New South Wales, in several instances
I abstracted the eggs of this Bronze Cuckoo from the bulky nest of the
Yellow-throated Sciaib Wreu ( Seriairiiis citrenijularia), together with
the larger eggs of the rightfid owner. Only once did I take, as Mr. Lau
did in the Soutli Queensland scrubs, the strange egg in the nest of the
other Sciiib Wren, the Large-billed {S. iiuuj it lros.tr iii), also so common
in this locahty.

As these nests are similarly constnicted, and frequently near each
other, I thought it remarkable that the Cuckoo should select one in
preference to the other.

Dr. Bennett, in his " Gatherings of a Natiu-alist in Australia,"
mentions that a White-shafted Fantail ( Rhipidura albiscapa) was shot
at Ryde, near Sydney, in the act of feeding a solitary young " Bronze
Cuckoo," in its nest — but which species is not stated.

In the west, the Bronze Cuckoo eggs I there foiuid were in nests
with clutches of the Western Tit (Acanthiza apicalis). I also noticed
these birds feeding a young Cuckoo. While in a forest near Cape

* I have included these as foster birds under this species, although Dr.
Ramsay does not make it clear to which of the two Bronze Cuckoos they should
belong. Vide P.Z.S., 1865 and 1869.

584 NESTS AND EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Leeuwin, during October, 1889, I made the following curious entry in
my field book : —

" Four or five Bronze Cuckoos, in shining coats, making a great
stir in a low tree, chasing each other, and all the while making melan-
choly, tremulous, whistUng noises. Anxious to ascertain the cause of
the disturbance, I approached too close to the httle company, wliich
immediately departed to another tree."

Occasionally two Bronze Cuckoos' eggs are deposited in the same
nest. I find that under date 2nd November, 1886, I took a pair of
bronzy coloured eggs from a nest of the Yellow-tailed Tit ( Aroiitlnza ),
near Doncaster, Victoria. Mr. C. French, jimr., recorded in the
" Victorian Naturalist," a similar instance that came imder liis obser-
vation during the season 1889.

Other species of the Cuckoos' eggs are occasionally foimd in the
same bird's nest with that of the Bronze Cuckoo, as Mr. Brent's note,
quoted imder the Fan-tailed Cuckoo, and the following remarks by
Dr. Ramsay prove; "From a nest of Acantlihfi ii/iiki I remember
taking, in the year 1855, no less than six eggs. Among them were
three Bronze Cuckoos' — two of Ghalcites plagosus, and one of C. hasalis.
In November last (1864), we took another nest of the same species,
containing one of each variety. In this instance, one of the eggs of
C. plagosus was embedded below the lining of the nest, and had
evidently been laid just before the nest was completed, as is not
infrequently the case. The other egg, which was a specimen of
C. basalis, my brother Percy placed in a nest of Acanthiza lineata,
which he had found on the previous day, and left for such an occasion.
On returning to it about a week afterwards, we foimd the young Cuckoo
had been hatched. After a lapse of seven days, the bronze feathers
were just bcginnuig to appear, and in about a week or ten days more
the yoimg bird was able to fly, the bronze on the wings, head and back,
now showing plainly.

" Now, as the apertures of the nests of the Acfiittliixce are exceedingly
small, a qiicstion naturally arises whether the Bronze Cuckoo lays its
eggs in the nest, or places them there by some other means.

" To this I can only answer that the apertures of those nests which
have contained Cuckoos' eggs are nearly twice as wide as the openings
of those nests which we have taken before the Cuckoo's egg has been
deposited in them. Tliis is more easily noticed in the nest of A. li/icn/a,
of which the aperture is very small, and nearly covered over with a
hood."

458. — CiiALCococcYX MALAYANus, Rafiles. — (384)
C. minutillus, Gould.

LITTLE BRONZE CUCKOO.

Figure. — Gould : IJints of .Austr.ili.i, fol., .supp., pi. 56.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xix., p. 298.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Zool. See, p. 600
(1875) ; North : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. ix., 2nd
ser., p, 41 (i8(j4) ; Campbell : Victorian Naturalist (i8g8).

Geagraphical Distribution. — North-west Australia, Northern Tcrri-

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTKACIAN BIRDS. 585

tory ;iiid North Quoousland ; also New Giiiuea, Solomon Islands, Flores,
Boraeo, Philippuie Islajids, Java, and Malayan Peninsiila.

Eygs. — (Reputed.) Similar to those of V. p/ayusus, but darker or
more bronzy in colour. Dimensions in inches : (1) '76 x -56, (2) '73 x '52.

Observation^. — Little appears to be known of the smallest species of
our beautiful Bronze Cuckoos, which frequents the northern parts of
Australia.

In a measure, I agree with Mr. North that the Cuckoos' eggs found
in certain northern bii'ds' nests may be those of the C . maJayanus, but
there is nothing to prove that they are not really the eggs of
C. poscilurus, another northern variety of the Bronze Cuckoos.

Dr. Ramsay's original description in the " Proceedings of the Zoo-
logical Society " (1875) is very meagre, merely stating that a bronze-
coloured egg, beUeved to be that of C. minutillus (malayanusj, was
obtained from a species of Gei-ygone's nest.

Nearly twenty years afterwards, Mr. North writes : — " For some
yeai-s past, Mr. Boyd (Herbert River, Queensland) has found a
dark bronze-coloiu'ed egg of a Cuckoo in the nest of Gerygone
magniruatris, varying considerably from the well-known egg of
C. plagosus, and which I referred to when describing the nest
and eggs of G. magnirostris in the ' Ibis ' last year (1893).
Recently, Mr. Boyd has foi-warded two spirit specimens of
the Cuckoos frequenting the vicinity of where these bronze-
coloured eggs were deposited. One is the adult male of C.
mahiyaiiua, the other a young male of C'aconianiis castqneiventris.
Now, judging from analogy, one would reasonably expect to find the
egg of the latter species of the same type as G. flahelliformis and
C. insperafus ( variolosus), and I have little hesitation in provisionally
referring the Cuckoos' eggs foiuid in the nests of the Girygoiu moijiti-
ro-btri.-! as belonging to C. innhiydiiux, until Mr. Boyd has an opportunity
of watcliing one of those Cuckoos' eggs hatched by the foster-parent, and
conclusively pro\ang to which species the young bird belongs. "

Mr. Dudley Le Souef and Mr. W. B. Barnard have found similar
eggs in the nests of the Large-billed Fly Eater, or Gerygone tnagni-
ro-itris, in the Bloomfield River scrubs. The former collector also
reports the Masked Fly Eater (G. pfr.'tonaUi ) as a foster-parent of the
same Cuckoo, whilst Mr. R. Hislop has observed the strange egg in
the nest of the Lovely Wren (Miliums amahilis). In nearly every
instance there were two eggs of the foster-parent in the nest with the
Cuckoo's egg.

In the extreme north, at Cape York, Mi-. HaiTy Barnard found
these eggs in the nests of Masked Fly Eaters towards the end of
November, 1896 ; but, as I have previously mentioned, the parasitical
eggs ai-e just as likely to be those of C. p«cilurui< as C. malayanus.
F^r it must be remembered that Gould's type of C. russatus (pcecilurusj
came from Cape York.

^86 NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

459. — Chalcococcyx pcecilurus, G. R. Gray.
C. i-ui'>atus, Gould.

RUFOUS-THROATED CUCKOO.

Reference. — Ciit. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. .\ix., p. .^99.

Geogra-pliical Distrihution. — North-west Australia, Northern Terri-
tory, North Queensland, also New Guinea, Amboyna, Mysol and Coram.

Nest and Egys. — Undescribed.

Observations. — " Similar to 0. malayaiias, but differing in having
no white on the forehead ; a partial narrow rufous edging on the
secondaries, the outer tail coverts partially barred with rufous and
wliito; the edges of the tail feathers washed with rufous above."
(Shelley.)

460. — EuDYNAMLS CYANocEPHALA, Latham. (387)

E. fliiidersi, Vigors and Horsfield.

KOEL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. iv., pi. gi.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xix., p. 324.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — North: Proc. Linn. See, N.S. Wales,
vol. ii., 2nd ser., p. 554 (1S87), also vol. x., 2nd ser., p. 215
(1S95); Campbell: Victorian Naturalist (rSgS).

Geographical Distrihution. — North-west Australia, iNorthcrn Terri-
tory, Queen.sland and New South Wales; also New Guinea, Coram,
and Timor.

Eggs. — Oval or stout oval in shape ; tcxtiu'c of shell a trifle coarse ;
surface glossy ; colour, pinkish-buff or fleshy-tint (as seen on the egg of
the Pallid Ctickoo — C. jjaUidus), sparingly and softly marked (spotted
and blotched), thickest about the apex, with chestnut and i)ur])lish-
brown. Most resembles the better kiunvn egg of the Friar Bird
(Philemon rorniculatus), but is co;u'ser in tcxlure. Dimensions in
inches (type egg) : 1-36 xr02. (Plate 17.) A narrower specimen, with
the ma-jority of the markings forming a caj) on the larger end :
1-39 X -9.

Observations. — This fine Cuckoo, or Keel, the male specially splendid
for liis glossy gi'ccnish-black coat, is found chiefly in Northern and
Eastern Australia. It visits as far south as New South Wales, where
it arrives in September, departing again about March.

I have enjoyed hearing its loud whistling call notes, which become
somewhat monotonous when kept up almost incessantly both day and
night during the breeding season.

NESTS and eggs of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 587

Koels' eggs are rare items in coOections. As stated iu the " Pro-
ceedings of the Liunean Society of New South Wales, ' vol. ii, 2ud series,
p. 554 (1S87), Mr. George Masters first obtained an egg of the Koel at
Gayudah, Queensland, on the 25th November, 1870. He shot at and
woimded a female, aud while pursuing her she dropped an egg. A
photogiaph of this egg, sent by Dr. George Bennett, was exhibited at
the meeting of the Zoological Society of Loudon, Juuc, 1873.

However, the first normal egg was discovered, under highly interest-
ing circumstances, by Mr. S. W. Jackson, at South Grafton. I quote
from a copy of his printed remarks (dated 3rd January, 1895), which
he thoughtfully forwarded to me; — "On Wednesday evening, 31st
October, 1894, I was going out about three miles from South Grafton
into the bush, in the hope of getting a few beetles, &c., but before I
had gone two miles from the town, I was much attracted by a great
noise made by a pair of Koels, male and female, which were in an
apple tree (Anyophora), sometimes called a mahogany. On going up
to the tree I saw the female Koel sitting on a limb, near the nest of the
Oriole (0. viridis). I at once climbed the tree, and found the nest
contained three eggs of the latter bird, so I came down and sat in the
shade of a gum tree, and watched the female Koel. Slie first called
the male Koel, and both sat near the Oriole's nest. After five minutes
the male Koel flew away, and the female went on to the Oriole's nest.
I did not move from the spot where I was sitting, so after fifteen
minutes I got up and hit the tree, to frighten the Koel off the Oriole's
nest, but she would not go. I felt certain she was laying. After a
time I again hit the tree, and off the female Koel flew, accompanied by
the male Koel, who had in the meantime retiu-ncd. I was delighted
at this, and once more ascended the tree, and found the nest contained
four eggs — three of the Oriole and one of the Koel (Eudynamix cyano-
ceplmla). A description of the latter I have already given."

Mr. Jackson forwarded his rare find to the Australian Musemn, and
Mr. North described it in the " Proceedings of the Linncau Society,
New South Wales" (1895), concluding with the following remark:- —
" It will be obsei-ved that the egg of Flinders Cuckoo is the same size
(^.bout) of those of the Green-backed Oriole, although, as a nile, the
eggs of AustraUan Cuckoos are larger than those of the birds in whose
nests they are deposited. In the choice of a foster-parent for its young,
Flinders Cuckoo has, however, exercised great discrimination in select-
ing a species that, hke itself, depends entirely on fruits and berries for
its subsistence during the spring and summer months."

Probably the food of the Koel is not entirely frugivorous, because
Mr. Carl Lumholtz recorded that, at Gracemere ((.Queensland), he
observed foiu- Wood Swallows ( Artamus sordidus) feeding a young
Koel, which he shot, at the same time bringing down one of the Wood
Swallows.

Mr. Ed. Cornwall, writing to me from Townsville (Queensland),
23rd November, 1896, reports: —

" I have taken what I believe to be the egg of Flinders' Cuckoo.
I took it, on October 15th. from the nest of the Hclmeted Friar Bud;
and as the Cuckoos were verj' plentiful here, and were evidently mating.

q88 NESTS AA-D EGGS OF AUSTRAL/AN BIRDS.

also as the Friar Birds were seen chasing the Cuckoos away, I do not
tliiuk there is much doubt about the identity of the egg.'

Writing again later in the season, Mr. Cornwall says : — " Here is
a note about the Keel which may be of interest. On two different
occasions this year, my attention was drawn to the young of that
species being fed by two other birds. In each case it was the Yellow-
tinted Honeyeater (Ptilotis flava) and the Helmeted Friar Bird
(Plnhmon huceroides). I thought it rather remai'kable that those two
distinct birds should be feeding the one nestling. Mr. B. Gulhver can
endorse the above statement."

The Koel hkewise lays in the nest of the Common Friai- Bird
(P. corniculatus). At Cliinchilla (Queensland), near Mr. Broadbent's
camp, was a nest of a Friar Bird. He watched the young Cuckoo come
out and the old Friar Bii'ds feed it, for about a week, in the neighboiu--
hood of his tent. There were no young Friar Birds with it. After the
young Koel grew big enough, it was shot for collecting purposes. Tlie
male Koel used to come about the nest at night, remain till dawn, and
fly away till the next night.

On the authority of Dr. W. Macgillivray, the Yellow-thi'oated Miner
(My~aiithn flnviyuJa ) may bo added to the list of foster-parents of the
Koel. Also the Silvery-crowned Friar Bird (P. (irye.iiticepx) — Le Souef,
and the Little Friar Bu-d (P. sordidus), and Northern Oriole (0. affinisj
— -Keartland.

461. — ScYTHuops NOV.*: HOLLANDi^, Latham. — (38G)
CHANNEL BILL.

Figure. — Gould ; Birds of Australia, £ol., vol. iv., pi. go.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xix., p. 330.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould: Birds of Australia (184S),
also Handbook, vol. i., p. 630 (1865) ; North : Proc. Linn.
Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. ii., 2nd str., p. 410 (1887); Campbell :
Proc. Roy. .Soc, Victoria, vol. v., new^ser., p. 125 (1S93), al.so
Victorian Naturalist (iSgS).

Geographical Distribution. — Australia in general and Tasmania
(accidental); also New Guinea, New Britain, Ke Islands, Cerani, Bovuii,
Obi, Batchian, Tcmate, Celebes and Flores.

E(j(j!i. — Inclined to oval in shape ; texture of shell somewhat coarse;
surface slightly glossy ; colour, vinaceous-buff, dully blotched with chest-
nut or umber and purplish-brown. Much resembles tliose of (lie Hill
Crow Shrike (SlrcjHrd iiryuta ) of Tasmania. Dimensions in inches:
(1) l-6GxM3, (2) l-63xl'-26. (Plate 17.)

Observations.— Thi& bird appears to be a wanderer over the whole,
of Australia, but has not yet been recorded for the south-western

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 58^

portion, and sometimes reaches Tasmania. It is also found in New
Guinea, and other isLmds beyond.

The Channel Bill is manifestly interesting, because it is the largest
of AustraUan Cuckoos. It is sometimes called in the interior the
" Flood Bird," because of its arrival with such occurrences.

Gould has described an egg of this bird taken from the oviduct.

Mr. North has described a similar immature egg from a bird shot
on the Macleay Kiver, during the first week in November, 1884. An
egg collected for me (taken from a Crow's or Raven's nest, if I recollect
rightly) at Cooper's Creek, was, unfortunately, broken in transit.

A mature egg, described by me before the Royal Society of Victoria,
1892, was taken in October, 1880, near Inglcwood, Queensland, where
the Channel Bills were fairly numerous, by Mr. Heitnann Lau, and,
remarkable as it may appe'ar, from the nest of the Sparrow Hawk
( Accipiter), together with an egg of the bird of prey. On another
occasion, Mr. Lau took a pair of Channel Bill's eggs, together with a
pak of the Black-backed Magpie's (Gymnarhinn iibicejtj, all fresh, from
the nest of the latter, while the previous season he took a pair of young
Channel Bills from the nest of a Strepera, probabl}' S. (/rnruhna, and
forwarded them to the Queensland Museum. It would be indeed
interesting to leam if the same Channel Bill deposited the two eggs in
the foster-bird's nest, or were they laid by separate birds. The probable
number of eggs laid by the Channel Bill is three.

RefeiTing to the Pied Crow Sliriko (Strepera graculina) as a foster-
parent to the Channel Bill, Mr. K. Broadbcnt kindly sends the following
interesting field notes : — " I have seen, in January, flocks of Channel
Bills in company with Streperas, just under the mountains in the big
scrubs — some beautiful scnibs never yet trodden by the foot of white
man.

" When camped under Mount Graham, on Gowrie Creek, Herbert
River, near my tent was one of these Strepera's nests, which must have
cont»ained a young Channel Bill, because all the Streperas were appar-
ently busy feeding one. Just at dark I noticed the two old Cuckoos
visit the nest. All night long they were calling around, becoming
silent at dawn."

The following Queensland note, by Mr. E. M. Cornwall, appeared
in the " Victorian NaturaHst," June, 1890, taken from his field book
under date 20th February, 1890: — "My attention wa^ attracted to-day
by the peculiar beliavioiu of a pair of Crows and two other birds, which,
on closer inspection, proved to be young Channel Bills (Scythrops
novcB-hoUandiee). I had heard that the Crow was the foster-parent of this,
the largest of our Australian Cuckoos, but had never before noted them
in company. WTiat struck me as remarkable was the fact that there
were two young Cuckoos being reared by the one pair of Crows."

Mr. Herbert Kenny, wiiting to me from Cooper's Creek, says: —
" Channel Bills, or Flood Birds, make their appearance just before or
diu-ing rain or floods, laying principally in Crows' nests. Later on, or
prior to leaving, the old Channel Bills go round and gather up their
yovmg, when some hard fighting between the Channel Bills and the
Crows usually ensues."

5go NESTS AND VGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

When in North-west Australia, with the Calvert Expedition
(1896-7), Mr. G. A. Kcai'tlaud observed that: — "At tlie approach of
the tropical rain in Januai-y the iSnjfhrnps made its appearance in the
early morning, always coming from the west and going east. Their loud
notes, which they utter when flying, were always noticed by the Crows
at our camp, which at once assembled and attacked the intrader. Then
a battle royal ensued. Two or more Crows attacked simultaneously,
■ and the shai-p snap of theii' bills might be heard for some distance.
Wlien the Channel Bill was chased for about a mile the Crows retmnied
to theu" qtiarters. On Moimt Campbell a pair of Scyfhrops frequently
resorted to a fig-tree to feed. I shot the female on 3rd March, and
found the stomach full of figs. The ovaries were well developed, and
contained three yolks, varying in size, one being as large as a small
cheri-y, the other two slightly less. Near the Margaret River, the
natives took two young ones from a Cl'ow's nest near the homestead,
which the Srythrnps had frequently visited. They are locally known
as ' Stomi Birds.' "

Mr. R. J. N. BiuTowes infomis me he has seen several Channel
Bills reared about station camps, in Queensland. The big Cuckoos
become veiy domesticated, feeding on scraps of meat, but generally
foraging a good deal on their own account. One at StrathcLan-, with
its ^ving clipped, roamed about at will. It never went more than one
hundred yards from the camp, and always returned to its cage at night.

Sub-family — Centropodin*.

4B2. — CENTRorus phasianu.s, Latham. — (.'JSS to .'590)
C. macrourus, Gould.
C. melanurus, Gould.

COUCAL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. iv., pi. 92.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xix., p. 3.(0.

Previous Dtscriplions of Eggs. — Ooiild ; Birds of .'Vustralia (18.(8),
also Handbook, vol. i., p. 635 (1865) ; North : Austii. Mus.
Cat., p. 250 (iSSy), also Rec. Austn. Mus., vol. ii., p. 17 (1892) ;
Campbell : Victorian Naturalist (1898).

Geographical Dutrihution. — North-west Australia, Northern Terri-
tory, Queensland, and New South Wales.

Nest. — Large, covered, with an opening at cither end ; composed of
dried gras.scs, sticks, &c. ; lined inside with loaves, and usually placed
in tussocks of coarse gra.ss, but sometimes among the lower leaves of
the screw palm (Pandanux), in a low thick bush, or in a deserted nest
of a Babbler ( Puinaforliiiius).

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

591

Egffs. — Clutch, three to five ; loundisli in form ; texture of shell
somewliat coarse ; surface glossy, but sometimes rough or limy ; colour,
dull or dirty white. Dimensions in inches of a clutch: (1) 1'67 x 1'18,
(2) 1-5 X 1-2, (3) 1-45 X 1-21.

Oljstrvafions. — Tlic Coucal is the only member of the Australian
Cuculidre that imdertakes the responsibility of rearing its own family.
Its range is tropical and sub-tropical, where it loves to dwell in the
moister tracts, amongst coarse rank grass and other vegetation.

In the matter of diet the Coucal is a ferocious creature. It is
reported that it devours small snakes and birds, and is addicted to
robbing nest-s in fowl-yards.

Mr. Charles Barnard, through Mr. North, has added an interesting
note to the nidilication of the Coucal. He says: — "On the 15th
Februarj', 1891, I found a nest with three eggs of Ceiitropus 2'J'asianus.
The nest was built about fifteen inches above the gi-ound in some high,
broad-bladed grass, the tops of which were drawn down and loosely
interwoven into the shape of a ball of about eight inches internal
diameter, with a round hole in one side for entrance, and another at
the opposite side as a means of exit (as mentioned in Gould — A. J. C).
The bottom of the nest was tluckly padded with bloodwood ( Eiim!i/j)fiis
corxjmhosa) leaves, which extended through the entrance, and on to the
bent down grass outside the nost^ in the shape of a platform."

Again, another brother (Mr. Harry Barnard), in chatting with me
about birds in general, mentioned that the Coucal's nest is not unfre-
quently placed on a fallen log or other support, such as a short bush
or long grass- — the sutTounding gi-ass being woven together, with the
addition of twigs.

Mr. S. W. Jackson (South Grafton, New Soutli Wales) has kindly
forwarded me a verj' curious note respecting the Coucal laying in an
old nest of the Babbler ( Poinntorhinin^ temporaliii). He states: —
" I flushed the Coucal off the nest, which was built on a horizontal
branch of a low tree, and not more than twelve feet from the ground.
The foiu- eggs were simply laid on tlie top of the Babbler's nest, and
the Coucal had made a neat receptacle for them by pulling the sticks
and twigs away, and leaving a foundation of soft, paper-like bark." The
date on wluch the eggs were taken was the 16th September, 1895.
Mr. Jackson infoi-ms me he has since found other sets of Coucals' eggs
similarly situated.

I have hiuited the pheasant-like Coucal in Queensland, where they
are sometimes erroneously called Grass Owls. I have also heard them
called Swamp Pheasants. The eggs, however, in my collection, were
taken by Mr. W. T. Bailey, in Southern Queensland, on 19th Februaiy,
1891.

The breeding months would appear to be from September to
Februai-y or March.

502

NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ORDER— PSITTACI : PARROTS.

FAMILY— LORIID.^ : LORIES, OR BRUSH-TONGUED
PARROTS.

463. — Trichoglossus nov^-hollandi;e, Gmelin. — (444)
T. multicolor, Gmelin.

BLUE-BELLIED LORIKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 48.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 57.
Previous Demriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
{1883); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 266, pi. 14, fig. 8 (1889).

Geoi/raphiriil Dixfrihufion. — Australia (except, pcrhap.s. West and
North-west), and Tasmania.

NeM. — Witliin a hole of a branch or bole of a large tree.

Enf/s. — Clutch, two usually ; round in shape, but compressed or
sharply nipped off at one end ; texture of shell somewhat fine ; surface
dull, Ijut ocasionally has a slight trace of gloss and sometimes limy
nodules; colour, white. Dimensions in inches of odd examples:

(1) 1-12 X -89. (2) 1-06 X -88; of a proper pair: (1) Mix -94,

(2) 1-08 X -95.

Ohxervations. — The many-coloured and beautiful so-called Blue
Mountain Parrot follows the forests of flowering gums throughout
Australia, except, perhaps. West. It is also foimd in Tasmania, where
its visits, as in other places, are iiTegular. It is a most beautiful
species, with green upper surface, rich blue head and abdomen, chest
rich scarlet, with blood-red bill and eyes to match. Tlie sexes ai-e
almost alike in colouring. Total length, 12 inches. As a flock of these
splendid Lorikeets wheel simultaneously in mid-air, the flashing splen-
dour of the deep crimson under the surface of the wings, intensified by
the light of a slanting sun, is a sight to be remembered. But there axe
other sights. During February, 1896, thousands of these grand Lori-
keets visited a vineyard about foiu- acres in extent, near Murcliison,
on the Goulbum River, feasting for tliree days on grapes. They
remained in one vineyard, although others were near. The unduly
favoured vigneron was .so exasperated, not only at the depredations
committed, but with the terrible din of the multitudes of h;irsh,
screeching voices, that in one day he shot no less than seventy bij-ds.

In 1881 I was indebted to the late Mr. George Barnard for the eggs
(those originally described) of the beautiful Blue-bellied Lorikeet, t^aken
on his run, Coomooboolaroo, Queensland. He informed me that this

TAKING A BLUK-BELLihLJ LuKlKKKT'S NEST.
From a Photo by S. IV. Jackson.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

593

bii-d invariably lays two eggs. Possibly the clutches are regulated by
the seasons nnd siipplv of food, because the late Mr. Grcgoiy Batcman,
a most intelligent field obsei-ver and bird catclicr, told mo that in good
seasons near Stratford, Gippsland, he has seen four eggs in the nest of
the Blue Moimtain Parrot, as he called the bird.

Cliief breeding months, September or October to December or
January. But the Lorikeets sometimes lay during July and Augu.st in
South Queensland, while a record in the " Catalogue of the Australian
Museum ' stated that Mr. J. A. Boyd, Herbert River, Norlh Queens-
land, foimd a nest containing young as late as the month of May (1888).

With reference to Verreaux's Lorikeet, or Loi-y, T. verrrauxius,
separated by Professor Mivart,* other sound authorities (Salvadori and
Gould) consider it a hybrid between T. tinvce-holhnulice and GIossop-
aittacus ronrttinus.

The picture by Mr. S. W. Jackson, " Taking a Blue-bellied Lorikeet's
Nest,' is not without interest for its originality, 'ihe bmich of tree-
orcliids growing on the right-hand portions of the tree tnmk shows that
the region where the picture was taken is undoubtedly sub-tropical.

464. — Trichoglossus rubritorques. Vigors and Horsfield. — (445)
RED-COLLARED LORIKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 49.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 60.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Le Souef : Victorian Naturalist, vol.
XV., .p. 151 (iSgi), also Ibis, p. 360 (1899); North: Victorian
Naturalist, vol. xvi., p. 12 (1899).

Geor/raphical Distrihufinn. — North-west Australia, Northern Terri-
tory and North Queensland.

Xest. — Within a hol° or hollow spout of a tree (eucalypt).

Egc/x. — Clutch, two ; roundish oval in .shape ; texture of shell fine ;
surface without gloss ; coloiu-, originally wliite, but becomes more or less
stained with the wood dust of the nest. Dimensions in inches of a
proper pair : (1) Ml x -87, (2) 1-05 x 1-03.

Observations. — This lovely Red-collared Lorikeet inhabits the nor-
thern parts of Australia, and is a beautiful representative of its near
ally, the Blue-bellied Lorikeet of more eastern parts, from which it
differs in having the throat and abdomen deep olive, almost black, in
addition to its distinguishing red collar.

Mr. E. J. Hanis, collecting for Mr. G. A. Keartland, was probably
the first white man to handle the eggs of the Red-collared Lorikeet.
They were taken in the Derby District, May, 1898.

' " Monograph of the Loriidae."

38

594 NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

During December and January Jollowing, Mr. E. Olive, collecting
for Mr. Le Souef and Drs. Ryan and Snowball, found several nests in
the Port Darwin District. A pair of these eggs was first publicly
exhibited and desn-ibed by Mr. Lc Souef at a meeting of the Field
NaturaUsts' Club of Victoria, 13th March, 1899.

Breeding season apparently variable.

465. PSITTEUTELES CHLOROLEPIDOTUS, Kuhl. (446)

SCALY-BREASTED LORIKEET.

Figure.— Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 50.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 65.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
{1886) ; North : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. ii., 2nd
ser., p. 986 (1887), also Austn. Mus. Cat., app. ii., pi. 14, fig.
12 (1S90).

Geograj)hicaI Dhtrihution. — Queensland, New South Wales, and
interior of South Australia (probably).

Next. — Within a hole usually in a tall tree.

Erjgs. — Clutch, one to two; roundish in form; texture of shell
fine ; stu^ace vrithout gloss ; colour, white, more or less stained with
wood dust. Dimensions in inches of a clutch: (1) l'Ox'82,
(2) 1-0 X "82; of a single and smaller example: -94 x -78.

These eggs, being more roimded at the smaller end, arc unlike those
of the Blue-bellied Lorikeet (Trirhmjlnsmx nova'-hoUandirc).

Observations. — During my Queensland excursion, 1885, I shot
specimens of the Scaly-breasted Lorikeets, which roam chiefly through
the eastern latitudes of Australia, but I have never seen it, or heard of
them being found south of the MiuTay.

The Scaly-breasted Lorikeet takes its name from the beautiful scale-
Uke yellow markings on the breast of its otherwise rich, gi-ass-gi-een
plumage. Tlie under surface of the wings is adorned with the richest
of scarlet, which is most strikingly seen when the bird flies.

Gould stated that among other places, the Scaly-breasted Lorikeet
used to breed in all the large eucalypts near Maitland, on the Hunter
River, but, he regretted to say, he was imable to procure its eggs.

I received an egg from the late Mr. George Barnard's collection,
wliich I exhibited and described before the Field Naturalists' Cli»b of
Victoria, 14th December, 1885. At Coomooboolaroo, this Lorikeet
lays a single egg, sometimes two. Out of nine nests found there two
only contained pairs, the rest having a single egg each. Mr. Barnard
was the first collector to procure these rare eggs. Mr. S. W. .T.nckson
tells me that on one occasion he found throe eggs in a nest.

Usual breeding season from June to October, or Inter.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRAL/AN BIRDS. jgj

466. — Ptilosclera versicolor, Vigors. — (447)
RED-CROWNED OR VARIED LORIKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 51.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. x.x., p. 66.

Geographical Distrihutiun. — North-west Australia, Northern Terri-
tory, and North Queensland.

Nest and Eggs. — Undoscribed.

Observations. — This delightful Lorikeet flies in flocks in the forest of
Northern Australia, where Gilbert first observed it flashing on the top-
most flowering branches of the eucalypts and melaleucas. It may be
readily distinguished from all the other Lorikeets by the narrow stripe of
yellow down the centre of the feathers of the plumage, and the rich,
red crown of the head.

These Lorikeets are said to breed in the hollow limbs of trees on
the margin of the Margaret River, North-west Australia.

467. — Glossopsittacus concinnus, Shaw. — (448)
G. australis, Latham.

MUSK LORIKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 52.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 6g.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. loi (1865) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 268 (1889).

Geographical Disfrihiifion. — Queensland, New South Wales, Vic-
toria, South Austraha, and Tasmania.

Ne-sf. — Within a hole or hollow in a dead or living tree.

Eggs.- — Clutch, two to four ; roundish or round oval in shape ;
texture of shell somewhat fine ; surface without gloss ; colour, wliite,
dulled by the wood dust of the nest. Dimensions in inches of two
pairs: A (1) -98 x '83, (2) -98 x -83 ; B (1) -98 x -82, (2) -97 x -81.

Observations. — This Lorikeet, of musky odour, enjoys a range down
Eastern Australia (including portions of the interior) to Tasmania.
Except for its habit of following the flowering g^ms, it might almost be
regarded as a stationary species. Tlie bird may often be seen, or its
harsh screeching notes heard, in the blue-gums about our cities, feasting
upon the flowers. It is a common species, chubby and thick set in
figure, and dressed in green, ornamented on the forehead and cheeks
with patches of deep crimson. Length of liird, about 9 inches.

5g6 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

I have observed many nests of the Musk Lorikeet in Victoria, but
the only one I could reach was in a dead (rung) cucalvpt, near the
Gunyah Creek, Bendigo district. It contained a pair of eggs in an
advanced stage of incubation. Date, 4th October, 1880.

Mr. Brent informs me the complement to a clutch of the Musk
Lorikeet in Tasmania is usually fom- eggs.

These Lorikeets have also cultivated a taste for fniit. During the
.summer (February and March) of 1889, the Muskies were vei-y trouble-
some in the apple orchards of South Brighton. In April, after their
depredations. I obsei-ved flocks of these birds heading in a north-
easterly direction.

Breeding months September to December.

468. — Glossopsittacus porphyrocephalus, Dietrichsen. — (449)
PURPLE-CROWNED LORIKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 53.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 70.

Previous Description of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist (1S93).

Geo(/rfij)liiraI Dixtrihutinn. — New South Wales, Victoria, South and
West Australia.

Next. — Within a hollow spout or hole of a tree.

Egga. — Clutch, fovu- ; roundish or round oval in form ; texture of
shell fine; surface withovit gloss; colour, white, more or less dulled by
the wood dust of the nest. Dimensions in inches of two proper clutches :
A (1) •84x-66, (2) ■84X-66, (3) -8 x -7 ; B (1) -8 x -66, (2) -79 x -68,
(3) -76 X -65, (4) -77 x -65.

Observations!. — Tliis exquisite little Lorikeet is an especial favourite
of mine. Its particular range of habitat is across the southern parts
of Australia, from east to west.

The Piu'plc-crowned Lorikeet is rarely seen in the vicinity of Mel-
bourne, bvit, in 1897, small flocks were obsei-ved flying over the city.
Several specimens were shot for collections, notabl}' at liie Zoological
Gardens, and the Horticultural Gardens, Burnley ; also at Somcrvillc,
Western Port, where the birds were seen for the first time.

Once, when on the P. & 0. mail boat, steaming across S))ciiccr
Gulf (Soutli Australia), I was agreeably astonished to sec one of these
little Lorikeets flutter on board and lodge on the hurricane deck, where
I easily secured it. On holding it up to tlic admiring passengers, the
little bird pi-otestcd by digging its hard bill into my thiunb. Throwing
the bird into the air, it uttered its characteristic, harsh screecii, gave
its body a quiver, and headed straight for the land.

iVESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRAL! A A' BIRDS. jyj

At the timo of a visit to the Wimmera district, Victoria (October,
1882), I foiuul ihu Furple-LTowucd Loiikcct had commenced breeding
in the taller trees, but was unable to procure the eggs myself. I also
noticed young of this species ui a karri ( L'iiC(i/i/pti/>: J forest in West
Australia, 6th October, 1889. It was not till 1893 that I had the
pleajjure of first describing the eggs before the Field Natiu'alists' Club
of Victoria, through the agency of Mr. W. White (a brother, by the
way, of the late Mr. Wlute, whose useful labours are frequently
mentioned by Gould).

The first nest foimd by Messrs. W. and A. J. Wliite was in a hollow
spout of a giun-tree near Momit Barker, South Australia. It contained
one egg and three young newly hatched. Date, IStli Septembei-, 1886.
The parent birds came close by, and naturally exhibited great anxiety
during the operation of chopping the entrance large enough to obtain
the eggs.

A set of three, that now adorns my collection, was taken by the
same gentleman at Dingo Creek, Mount Remarkable, 27th September,
1894. The nesting hole was in a large limb of a red-g^im growing on
the banks of the creek.

I conclude with a note from Mr. White : — " It may iaterest you to
know that the Porphyiy-crowned Lorilceet nests during many months
of the year, according as the different species of eucalypts come into
flower, which produce their food. I amved at Flinders Range (some
two hundred and odd miles north of Adelaide) on the 19th September
(1894). There were then young birds on the wing, so some of the old
birds must have laid about the latter end of July. On October 6th,
when leaving the locality, I saw other birds were just beginning to
breed. These observations are borne out by Mr. Mnrray, the owner
of Warrabra station, a good observer, who says the Lorikeets nest in
batches from July to Januaiy, or as the different kinds of gum come
into flower. Other persons have seen them nesting in - December.
I could not ascertain if they nested twice in the year. My own
impression is that they do."

Again, wiiting later (1st January, 1896), Mr. White says; —
" I send you another clutch of four eggs (vei-y uncommon to get the
quartet) taken by Mr. M. Miu'ray, near Stone Hut, Flinders Range,
25th May, 1895. I have a clutch of three taken on the 3rd May."

469. — Glossopsittacus pusillus, Shaw. — (450)
LITTLE LORIKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 54.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 71.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 104 (1865) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 268 (1889).

Geographical Distribution. — Queensland, New South Wales, Vic-
toria, South Australia, and Tasmania.

598

NESTS AND EGGS OF .WSTRMIAN BIRDS ^

Nest. — Witliin a small hole of a branch or in the elbow of a limb
of a tree.

Eggs. — Clutxjh, four ; roundish or round oval in form ; texture of

shell fine ; suiiace without gloss ; colour, white, more or less stained

by wood dust. Dimensions in inches of a pair : (1) -75 x -62,
(2) -73 X -64.

Observations. — The chubby Little Lorikeet, the least of its tribe, is
just a Musk Lorikeet in miniature, and enjoys a similar range of
habitat. In addition to ravisliing for food the flowers of the various
eucalypts, it may often be scon threading, hanging sometimes head
downwards, the slender branches of the mistletoe, feeding either upon
the flower or fruit of that parasitical plant.

The Little Lorikeet is apparently fond of the company of the Musk
Lorikeet, for I have observed mixed flocks flying. But I cannot svu-pass
Gould's experience, pictured thus : — " During one of my morning
rambles in the brushes of the Hunter, I came suddenly upon an
immense Eucdl gptus, which was at least two hundred feet high. The
blossoms of this noble tree had attracted hundreds of birds, lx)th
Parrots and Honey Suckers, and from a single branch I killed four
species of the former, viz., the Blue-bellied Lorikeet (T. novce-hoUandiceJ
Scaly-breasted Lorikeet (P. chlorohpidotus), Musk Lorikeet (G. con-
cinnusj, and the Little Lorikeet (G. jiuxi//ux)." Truly in this instance
it may be said that " Birds of a feather flock together." Gould suc-
ceeded in finding a nest of the Little Lorikeet, and on the 11th October,
1839, prociu-ed foiu' eggs from a hole in a small branch of a lofty
eucalypt growing on the flats at Yarrundi, on the Upper Hunter.

A nest I observed by a creek near Bagshot, Bendigo district,
although comparatively low, was so awkwardly situated at the elbow of
a thick limb that the cunning little birds were allowed to hatch out their
eggs unmolested.

I pcssess a parallel to Gould's picture, above quoted, from Dr. \V.
Macgillivray, 'Western District, Victoria. "Writing imder date 15tli
December, 1895, he says: — " On a trip twenty miles out, which I made
a month ago, I passed thi'ough a patch of blossoming giuns alive with
honey-eating birds, especially the Lorikeets, T. novce-huUandiw, G. con-
cinnus, G. pusillus, and N . discolor."

Usual breeding season latter end of September to December or
January.

FAMILY— CYCLOPSITTACID^^.

470. -Cyclopsittacus coxeni, Gould.
RED-FACED LORILET.

Figure. — Cloiild : liirds of .Australia, fi>l., siipp., pi. O5.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 94.

Geographical Distribution. — South Queensland and New Soulli
Wales.

.VESTS AXD EOGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. ^gg

Nest and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Observations. — Mr. Waller, of Brisbane, was the first collector to
forwai'd to Gould in England the two kinds of Australian Lorilets.
Regarding the Red-faced species — scientific<ally named after Mr. C.
Coxou, a brothor-iu-law of Gould and a member of the Legislative
Assembly of Queensland, who was much interested in Austrahan orni-
thology— Mr. Waller wrote to Gould: — "The liLstoiy of the bird, so
far as I can learn, is, that during the month of June, 1866, it was shot
by a sawyer near a mountain scrub, al^cut thirty miles from Brisbane.
The man states that he had seen a flock in the neighbourhood for some
weeks, and had shot several for a pudding ; being somewhat interested
in ornithology, and observing a chfTerence between them and the
ordinary Green Parrakeet, he skinned three or four, two of which he
brought me ; the others were, unfortunately, destroyed."

Wliile on my visit to the Riclimond River scnibs, a single example
of this pigmy PaiTot was shot from a tall fig-tree. On accoimt of their
partiahty for these trees, the bii-d is sometimes called the Fig Parrot.

471. — Cyclopsitt.vcus maccoyi, Gould.
G . macleayana, Ramsay.

BLUE-FACED LORILET.

Figure. — Gould — Sharpe : Birds of New Guinea, vol. v., pi. 7.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 95.

Geographical Distribution. — North Queensland.

Nest. — -Within a small hole in a tree in scmb or forest country, the
eggs being usually deposited about one foot from the entrance.

Eggs. — Clutch, three to four ; white at first, but become discoloui-ed
by the wood dust in the nest. An example in the Nehrkom collection,
from Cape York Peninsula, is round oval in shape, fine in texture,
surface without gloss, and measures in niches -86 x -7.

Observations. — This remarkable form of the Parrot family is peculiar
to the scrubs of Northern Queensland. It is a short bird, and has a
large rounded head furnished with powerful bill. There was a gi-and
rush for priority of description of tliis new and interesting bird in 1875
by Dr. Ramsay and Gould in the " Proceedings of the Zoological
Society,'' and Professor Sir F. McCoy in the " Annals and Magazine
of Natural History." The veteran, Gould, won on the post, as sporting
men say, naming the bnd C ijcJopsitta muccoi/i. Dr. Ramsay's
description of C . macleayana was actually first pubUshed in the " Sydney
Morning Herald," November 15th, 1874, but in scientific circles news-
paper reports do not count for priority, at least, that is the rule
followed in the Zoological Catalogues of the British Museum.

Goo NESTS A:\'D ECCS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

In February, 1894, Mr. W. B. Barnard, after a uortliern tour, for-
warded luc some interesting field notes, including one referring to this
Lorilet, with a skin for identification. Two nests were found in small
holes in trees, at a height of about forty feet from the ground ; the
eggs were deposited about a foot downward from the entrance. The
birds were discovered breeding in the scrub and forest country ahke,
from September to November.

Duiing my own Cardwell camp-out (1885) we prociu-ed skins of the
Blue-faced Lorilet.

FAMILY— CACATUID^ ; COCKATOOS.
Sub-family — Cacatuin.*;.

472. — MiCROGLOssus ATERRiMUS, Gmelin. — (404)

PALM COCKATOO.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., supp., pi. 6i.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 103.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.
Wales, vol. viii., p. 27 (1S83I ; Keartland : Victorian Naturalist
(1897); Le Souef : Ibis, p. 56 (1898).

Geographical Distribution. — North Queensland; also New Guinea,
Aru Islands, &c.

Nest. — The hollow branch or bole of a tree.

Eyys. — Clutch, one usually ; round oval in shape ; texture somewhat
coarse, or granulated ; siu'facc has a slight ti'ace of gloss, also a few
limy nodules ; colour, white. Dimensions in inches of single examples :
(1) 2-16 X 1-58, (2) 2-05 X 1-5.

Observations. — Tliis giant amongst Cockatoos is found in the palm
scrubs of Cape York and adjacent islands.

The following is an interesting and original note on tliis species
from Macgillivray to Gould: — "This very line bird, which is not lui-
common in the vicinity of Cape York, was usually found in the densest
scrub among the tops of the tallest trees, but was occasionally seen in
the open forest land, perched on the largest of the Euciilypti, apparently
resting on its passage from one belt of trees or patch of scrub to
another. Like the Cii/yjjturlii/iiri, it flies slowly, aiul usually but a
short distance. In November, 1849, the period of our la.sl visit to Cape
York, it was always found in pairs, very shy, and difliciilt of approadi.
Its cry is merely a low short wliistle of a single note, which may be
represented by the letters ' hwect-hweet.' The stomach of the first one

.VMSTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. go I

lolled coutaiutd a few small pieces of quartz and triturated fragments
of palm cabbage, with which, the crop of auotlier specimen was com-
pletely filled; and the idea immediately suggests itself, that the
powerfid bill of this bkd is a most fitting instrument for stripping off
the leaves near the summits of the Stafortltia elegans and other palms
to enable it to arrive at the central tender shoot."

A field note from Mr. Harry Barnard to Mr. Le Souef stated that
these birds nest in the forest country of Cape York. They have a
singular habit of breaking off, with the aid of their powerful bill, green
twigs about the thickness of a man's finger, stripping them of their
leaves, and dropping the bare twigs into the nesting hole. The birds
then bite the twigs into pieces about two or three inches in length.
One nest in particular, wliich ]\Ir. Barnard examined in a large blood-
wood (Eucalyptus) stiuup, had the bottom of the hole covered to a depth
of about fom^ inches with the portions of sticks. With regard to the
use of this bottom hning, Mr. Le Souef suggests a feasible explanation,
that, as the bu'ds breed from November to March — the rainy
season, — and as the nesting holes ai'e usually in upright trunks which
would catch much rain, the " dunnage of sticks would keep the egg
or yomig off the damp rotten dehris at the bottom of the hole.

Unfortunately, Mr. Barnard did not secure eggs. The holes he was
" shepherding " dming liis stay at Cape York, were for some reason or
other deserted by the birds.

The egg Dr. Kamsay originally described was obtained in New
Guinea, and was taken from the wood ihhrii m a hole at the height of
twenty-five feet from the groimd. A bird was seen to fly from the
nest, and when shot proved to be the female.

Mr. G. A. Keartlaud received the first authenticated egg of the
Palm Cockatoo, taken on the mainland at Cape York, February, 1897,
which is the example he kindly permitted me to use in my description
given above.

473. — C.\LYPTORHYNCHus BAUDiNi, Vigors. — (403)

WHITE-TAILED COCKATOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 13.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 106.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ;
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 26 (1865; Le Souef: Victorian
Naturalist, vol. xvi., p. 102 (1S99).

Geographical Distribution. — South-west Austraha.

Nest. — A hole in a tall karri tree, or other eucalypt, in a retired
part of a forest.

Eggs. — -Clutch, two ; colour, pure white. Average dimensions iu
inches: 1-75 x 1-37 (Gould).

6o2 NESTS AMD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Observations. — The Baudin or Wliite-tailed Black Cockatoo of the
west, is a splendid representative of the Funereal Cockatoo of eastern
forests. I shall never forget a pretty scene I witnessed one morning at
Deep Dene, in the Cape Leeuwin District. There was a flock of between
twenty and thifty of Baudin Cockatoos extending their wings, ducldng
their heads, and disputing for the u23permost places on the topmost
dead bi'anches of a low gum-tree. I was so near that the prominent
wliito ear coverts and white baiTed tails showed up to the utmost
advantage, and the birds seemed more lively than the other members
of the same genus I had seen in other parts of Austraha.

The princij)al breeding months for this species are October,
November and December.

In Mr. Le Souef's reference above given, he states that
" Mr. Bruce Leake (West Australia) found a nest of the White-tailed
Cockatoo on the 28th August, 1898. It was situated in a hollow spout
of a limb, thirty feet from the gi'oimd, that had broken off close to the
trunk and was partly overgrown, the two eggs being laid on the decom-
posed wood at the bottom. The birds had used the same nesting site
for several seasons. The eggs are dull white, sUghtly granulated, and
with a few small excrescences; in shape, oval, and measiu'e
(1) 1-79 X 1-3, (2) 1-77 X 1-26 inches."

Mr. Le Souef further mentions that the nesting season is Aug^ist
and September, as against Gould's (;.(., Gilbert's) observations that
October and December are the breeding season.

474. — Calyptorhynchus funereus, Shaw. — (401 and 402)
C. xanthonotus, Gould.

BLACK COCKATOO.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. ii and 12.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 107.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould: Birds of Australia (1848);
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 21 (1865) ; North : Rec. Austn.
Mus., vol. ii., p. 18 (1892).

Geographical Distribution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, South Austraha, Tasmania, and King Island.

iVf,,;. — A hole usually in the trunk of a large cucalypt, situated in
almost inaccessible forest tracts.

Eijgs. — Clutch, two ; roundish oval in shape ; texture of shell
coarse ; surf;ice slightly glossy, and with occasionally a few limy
excrescences. Dimensions of single examples : (from mainland)
1-93 X 1-45, (from Ta.sniania) 1-9 x 1-5; of a proper pair in the Hobart
Museum, taken from a stringy-bark (cucalypt), on the Western Tier,
25th January, 1897 ; (1, a pointed oval) 1-91 x 14, (2, a more rcgulai-
oval) l'89x 1-42.

N£STS and eggs of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 603

Obccrvatiuns. — Tliis large and cxccdingly fine Black Cockatoo, easily
distinguished by it* j'cllow-hai'rcd tail, is a lover of the wild timber
tracts and mountainous regions of Eastern Australia, more particularly
the southern part, and Tasmania. Duiing the expeditions of the Field
Naturalists' Club to Bass Strait, the birds were seen in the blue-gum
forests of King and Flinders Islands.

The late Mr. H. W. Wheelwright mentioned once having shot a
female Funereal Cockatoo in Maj', with an egg in her. In the olden
days (the fifties) these birds used chieily to frequent the banksias, but
often the large gums, in the neighbourhood of Mordialloc. They first
came in flocks, but as winter advanced they appeared to separate.

Another " Old Time Memory ' note by Mr. Isaac Batey, Sunbuiy,
Victoria, reads thus : — " The yellow-tailed Black Cockatoo, a bush
barometer for storms up coimtiy in the old times, used to trace the
creeks after wattle giixbs. About 1849, a pair of red-tailed Cockatoos
visited tliis place, the only instance I know of these bu'ds having done
so, one of which my father succeeded in shooting after an incredible
deal of trouble."

A large flock of Funereal Cockatoos were seen in the Mallee district
of Victoria, in the vrinter of 1897. Another flock was noticed in
October, 1898, while in Sejitember, 1899, I noticed a small number
myself.

The eggs of the Fimereal or Yellow-eared Black Cockatoo are ex-
tremely difficult to procure, for the reason that the bird seeks a tall
rotten tree in the most inaccessible parts of the forest wherein to nest.
In Gould's day he experienced the same difficulty in obtaining examples.
On the 2ud February, 1839, he received a note from a correspondent
in Tasmania, which ran as follows : — " In compliance with yom' request
I wrote to Mr. Wettenhall upon the subject of the Black Cockatoo's
nest, and he forthwith directed his shepherd to fell the tree in which
the bird had estabUslied itself. It was situated in a gully, and was
about 4i feet in diameter. The hole was from ninety to one hundred
feet from the ground, two feet in depth, and made quite smooth, the
heart of the tree being decayed. There was no appearance whatever oT
a nest. The tree was broken to pieces by the fall, and the contents of
the hole or nest destroyed ; the fragments, however, were sought for
with the greatest care, and all that could be found are sent you. It
may perhaps be as well to state that both while the tree was being
felled, and for a short time afterwards, a Hawk kept attacking the
Cockatoo, which flew in circles round the tree before it fell, uttering its
loudest and most mournful notes, and at times turning upon the Hawk,
until at length it flew oflf."

Another coiTespondent informed Gould that this bird " lays two
white eggs in some large rotten gum-tree, generally where one of the
largo branches has rotted off at the fork; iusicle tliis hole, which
occasionally extends five or six feet down the bole of the tree, the bird
scrapes and clears away some of the rotten wood until a sort of seat
is formed, for it is a very rude attempt at making a nest. The laying
commences about the latter end of October, or beginning of November.
The bird, which at other times is very shy and wild, now becomes very

6o4 NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

tame j aud I have kuowu an old bird to peixli herself quietly close to
me, while I have been examining the hole beneath, which contained her
eggs. When the young are hatched, both the old bu'ds go to the
adjacent grounds for a supply of food, which generally consists of the
seeds of some leguminous plant, and, having filled their crops and throats,
they both return, when one of them commences feeding one young,
and the other attends to and feeds the second. The young birds eat
an immense quantity of seeds, and arc very soon able to leave the nest;
but the old ones continue to feed them for some time longer. They
utter a veiy pccuhar low, continued, plaintive, screeching cry when
hungry. As the old birds disgorge the food and 23ush it into the mouth
of the young, they make a very ciuious noise, sounding like ' chucka,
chucka, chucka,' rapidly repeated."

The following are more recent Tasmanian notes which have been
kindly forwarded to me ; - —

Mr. A. E. Breut states that in 1884 he found a Funereal Cockatoo's
nest containing only one fresh egg. There was no chance of his return-
ing to the locality for the completed clutch, so he decided that one egg
in the hand was worth two in the bush, and took it.

Mr. Percy Grubb (Longford) writes to say that he found a nest on
Sth Febi-uary, 1896, containing a yoimg Funereal Cockatoo. The nest
was the dead part of the top of a tree, at a height of about seventy
feet from the ground. The depth of the hole was twenty-five inches,
diameter of entrance eighteen inches. On the principle that " half a
loaf is better than no bread, " Mr. Gnibb took half an egg shell which
was in the nesting hole and ^^laced it in his collection.

Mr. Leo Biu'bui-y, in January, 1896, took a nest containing a pair.
This is supposed to be the first ( ?) full set ever taken in Tasmania.

Mr. A. E. Brent, on the Sth Januaiy, 1897, discovered another nest
of this species, and made interesting observations on the habits of the
birds. He says : — " For about three weeks, when the female is sitting,
I discovered that the male would go to the nest three times a day —
at morn, noon, and night — aud was most regulai'. I would find myself
standing, watch in hand, looking for lum regularly every day for several
days, aud found that liis times never varied more than seven minutes.
To ascertain liis reasons, I went to the nest at night, and crept, wdthout
disturbing the sitting bird, to a spot from where I could see all that
went on, and waited. After some time, the old bird's ci-y would be
heard in the distance, and at the same tune the female's head would
appear at the hole, and she would answer him with a small scream, and
would repeat in answer to him as he drew near. As soon as he
appeared in sight she would fly out and settle on a dry branch, meeting
him there, and after the usual greeting he would sit and feed her for
fully ten minutes, just as if she had been a young bird. After tliis
she would sit and preen her feathers for a time, and then return to the
nest, always entering tiic hole tail first. Tliis pcrfonnancc I witnessed
for several days."

At Coomooboolaroo, Queensland, Mr. Barnard's sons took a nest in
June, 1884, with two eggs, which were deposited in the tree six feet
below the entrance to the hole. Another, with young, was taken July

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 605

following. The season previous they took a young bird from the nest
that contained the two eggs. Again, a few seasons later, Mr. Barnard
wi-ites : — "Last month (May, 1891), when the boys were out camping,
thev found four nests of Black Cockatoos — two of the Funereal and
two of Leach's — but, imfortunately, only one egg in each (rather too
early), and owing to the continued wet weather they were unable to
go again for a fortnight, and then had to walk the ten miles. Tliis
time they got one nest only. It was the Funereal species, one they had
robbed before in the trimk of a giun-tree. To get the nest on the
previous occasion the boys had to cut a hole about six feet below the
entrance. This time they found the bird had filled the apertiu-e bv
biting away the inside of the trunk and letting the dehrix settle down
to a sohd foiindation, reaching six inches above the cut opening, and
whereon the two eggs were placed."

In communicating the same intelligence to another correspondent.
Mr. Barnard added that the nests were all within a mile of each other,
and were in hollow boughs of lofty eucalypts. Those of the Funereal
Cockatoo were from thirty to forty feet from the ground, and deep
down in a hollow trunk, while the nests of Leach's were from seventy
to ninety feet from the ground, and the eggs could almost be reached
from the entrance.

A correspondent, wilting to "The Argus," 17th Julv. 1890, states:
" Wlicn at Cambridge Downs, Northern Queensland, in 1885, I hap-
pened to be galloping through some timber after horses, and I noticed
a Black Cockatoo fly out of an old stump about twenty feet high.
I climbed the tree and got one egg, which proved to have a yoiuig one
in it, but, nevertheless, I managed to save it. The old bird had yellow
bars on the tail feathers.''

The last find of a Funereal Cockatoo's nest is probably the most
interesting. It is in connection with a pair of eggs in the collection of
Mr. D. Le Souef, taken in the "Wimmera district of Victoria, 25th
February, 1896, by Mr. John L. Minogue. The ne.st was fifty or sixty
feet from the groimd, in a straight, dry red gum, the trees usually
chosen for breeding pvirposes in that district. The bird was seen to
fly out of the nesting hole. The collector stated that, as is always the
case, there is an intei-val of one week between the laying of each egg,
consequently one young bird is hatched before the other, the last
generally dying soon after leaving the shell, possibly having no chance
in the race for hfe ^vith its larger nest-fellow.

Mr. James Edgar, of Pine Hills, Han-ow, Victoria, had a Funereal
Cockatoo in captivity for two years, which could talk and whistle.
Tlie bird was difficult to rear, taking fits, which were cured by Epsom
salts. Otherwise, it was apparently well, excepting that the feathers
never grew properly, or rather the bird chewed them off. Probably
there was something wanting in its food, which consisted of bread and
milk, rice pudding, &c. It would eat nothing else.

Tlie breeding months of the Funereal Cockatoo would appear to
be May, June, and July, in Queensland, and October to January or
February in the south.

5oG NESTS AVD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

With regard to the exceedingly doubtful species, C. .rantlionntui,
supposed to be peculiar to Tasmania, Dr. Ramsay is of opinion that it
is nothing more than an insular variety of C. funereus, while Count
Salvadori states " Although I have kept this species (C. xaiithonotus)
separate from the preceding one (C . funereus), I am not all sure that
I am justified in so doing, as there is the most perfect gradation
between the two forms."

G. .raiithoiiofus is exactly like C. funereua in colouring, but is smaller
in its dimensions, and as both sizes have been found in Tasmania, and
on the mainland, I have deemed it simpler to treat them as one.

475. — Calyptorhynchus bank.5i, Latham. — (397)
BANKSIAN COCKATOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 7.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. log.

Trevious Description of Eggs. — North: Victorian Naturalist (1896).

Geoffrnjjhical Distribution. — Queensland, New South Wales, Vic-
toria, and South Australia.

Ne.9t. — A hole in_, or hollow limb of, a large tree, usually near a
river.

E<jgs. — Clutch, usually one ; long oval in shape ; textiu'e of shell
coarse, especially about the apex ; surface without gloss, minutely
pitted, and sometimes with a few limy nodules. Dimensions in inches
of single examples; (1) 2-19 x 1-5, (2) 2-03 x 1-34.

Ohxer vat ions. — This splendid Banksian Black Cockatoo enjoys a range
of habitat extending down Eastern Australia. Gould has mentioned the
bird as being a native of Victoria, but, by some oversight, the species
is omitted from the cohmin for that State in his "Tabic of Distri-
bution ; " nor is the important bird credited to Victoria in Dr. E. P.
Ramsay's " Tabular List."

The late Mr. H. W. Wheelvmght stated he knew of two specimens
of Black Cockatoos that were killed in the district of Melbourne
in the early " fifties," that had " the tail feathers spotted with
red." No doubt they were Banksian Birds. The late Mr. T. A.
Forbos-Lcith, in his treatise, '' The I'iu-rots of Victoria," states that
at one time the Banksian Cockatoo " was common enough in the interior
of Victoria," while I myself saw a small flock of tliese fine birds in the
Wimmera district (1882). They were engaged nipping off the tender
tops of a tree, leaving tlic branchlels .scattered on the ground below.

Although the Banksian was one of the first Black Cockatoos known
to ornithologists, its egg was one of tlie last to be described. The first

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 60;

authenticated egg was exhibited by my friend, Mr. Joseph Gabriel, at
a meeting of the Field Natiu-alists' Club of Victoria, held 12th August,
1895. When he first procured the rare specimen ho brought it to
compare with those of the other varieties of Black Cockatoos in my
collection, but, probably believing I had enough matter on new eggs
ready for the printer, he kindly allowed Mr. A. J. North, during a
visit to Melbourne, to describe the specimen in cm' home journal,
" The Victorian Naturalist."

Mr. W. H. Watson (Mr. Gabriel's collector) took two eggs in the
western district of Queensland about the 1st of May and June, res-
pectively (1895). Both nesting places were in large hollow limbs of
eucalypts overhanging the river. In both instances the fine black birds
were observed to fly from the nest. At one time Mr. Watson used
to manage Cultowa station, on the Darling River, where he noticed
many nests of this Cockatoo, generally in the biggest trees in the river
bends, and although he examined about a dozen nests in New South
Wales and Queensland, he never found more than a single e^g or one
young bird in any of them.

Another correspondent, possibly referring to the same species,
states : — " Their nests may be foiuid in the hollows of the tallest gum-
trees on the River Darhng, from Wilcannia to Bourke ; but their
greatest camping place is about Nelyambo, Buckanby, and Kalara.
Nesting time, July, August, and September. The young are very
difficult to rear, and veiy noisy."

Refening to the Banksian Cockatoo in the Bloomfield district,
Northern Queensland, a note by Mr. D. Le Souef, under date the end of
October, 1896, states that one of these birds " had its nest near by,
with a nearly fvdly-fledged yoimg one in it. The parent birds left their
fledgeling in the morning, and chd not return to it until the evening.
As the tree in which the nest was was close to the house, Mr. Cochrane
was enabled to keep the bird under his observation, and obsei-ved the
fact stated. The birds, apparently, only lay one egg, as in the four
nests that I have heard of such was the case. Mr. Hislop knew of
another nest, and was waiting until the young bird was old enough to
take, but the natives, forestalling him, took the yoimg bird and
ate it."

476. — CALYPTORHYNCnrs MACRonHYNCHUs, Gould. — (398)
GREAT-BILLED COCKATOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 8.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. no.

Georjraphicnl Dixtrihution. — North-west Australia, Northern Teni-
tory, and North Quensland.

NcM and Eggs. — Undescribed.

5o8 NESTS AND EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ObnervafionK. — The Groat-billed Black Cockatoo is a northern
species. All the specimens that came under Gould's notice were col-
lected in the Port Dai-win District, probably by Gilberti.

Amongst the mountains and hills near our camp at Cardwell were
some of these fine Cockatoos, at least, wo took thorn to be the variety
at present under consideration. They were oxccedinEflv shy, and we
only procured a pair. The male wa« an exceedingly handsome bird,
fully twenty-two inches in length, with a beautiful broad band of
scarlet across the tail feathers. Tlie female difFon-d in having a few
light-coloured .spots over her dusky plumage, with a mixture of yellow
in the scarlet band of the tail.

When exploring in the far north, Mr. O'Donnell flushed a Black
Cockatoo from its nest in a low hollow tree. The bird was, most
probably, this Great-billed species.

During the Calvert Expedition, early in November (1896), young
birds were taken by the natives from the spouts of the eucalypts on
the Margaret River.

477. C.VLYPTORHYNCHUS STELLATI'S, Waglcr. (399)

C. nnso, Gould.

RED TAILED COCKATOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. g.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. m.

Premoiis Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould: Birds of Australia (US48) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 17 (1865) ; North : Aves, Report
Horn Scientific Expedition, p. 59 {i8q6).

Gengrn-phiraJ DiMrihutinn. — West, North-west, and Central Aus-
tralia, and probably Northern Territory.

Nest. — A hole, where the eggs are deposited on the soft decayed
wood within, of a tall tree in forest or by stream.

Eggs.. — Clutch, one usually, two occasionally; oval or inclined to an
elUpso in fonn ; texture of shell coarse ; surface has faint trace of
gloss; colour, pure white. Dimensions in inches of typical examples:
(1) 2-06 X 1-44, (2) 2-05 x 1-42 ; but a fine series in Mr. G. A. Keartland's
collection varies from 2'16 x 1-.57 to 1-82 x 1-32.

Ohservafion.1. — Tliis fine Cockatoo is the Red-tailed species of the
great western and interior territory. I had opportunities of seeing
these sombre-coloured birds at home in the forests of karri and jaiTah,
in fact, I saw a bird emerge from .a nesting hole of a locally so-called
red gum. How I wished I could climb the tree and thrust my hand
into tho hole for an egg ! But to reach the spot was beyond my
ability, and there were no natives near.

The eggs Gilbert collected for Gould wore taken by a native from a
hole in a ver\' high gum-tree, in the la.st week of October.

/VESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTK ALLAN BIRDS. 609

Tlie Horn Scientific Expedition found the Red-tailed Cockatoo
plentiful in the interior. Mr. G. A. Keartland states the tirst speci-
men shot was by Mr. Horn, at the Goyder Well, on 15th May (1894),
the most southern point at which these birds were known to be found,
Judging by the young ones shot, the breeding season was evidently
just over, "for at Trickott's Creek they were numerous and flocking.
It was ascertained that they breed in the spouts of the eucalypts
along the Finkc, Todd, Hale, and Palmer Rivers, usually late, or
probably according to the season.

Eggs taken the following season (1895) reached Mr. Keartland
and other collectors, one pair being taken on the 12th March.

The specimen in my collection, a gift from Mr. C. French, jvmr.,
wa.s received from the same quarter (1896), therefore the Red-tailed
Cockatoo would appear to be a constant breeder in the interior parts.

Breeding season, October to March, or later.

478. C.\LYPTORHYNCHUS VIRIDIS, ViciUot. (400)

C. h'orhii, Wagler.

GLOSSY COCKATOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. lo.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p 112.

I'rcvious Denriftions of Kggs. — Campbell : Southern .Science Record
{18S3), also Nests and Eggs Austn. Birds, pi. 2, fig. 400 (1SS3) ;
North: Rec. .\ustn. Mus., vol. i., p. 115 (iSgi).

Geoyraijhicnl Disfrihution . — Queensland, New South Wales, Vic-
toria, and South Australia.

Nest. — A hole in or hollow bough of a tree.

Eggs. — Clutch, one to two, usually one ; roundish oval in shape ;
texture of shell coarse ; surface has faint trace of gloss, and occasion-
ally limy nodules ; colour, white. Dimensions in inches of single
examples : (1) 1-62 x 1-27, (2) 1-54 x 1-27.

Observations. — Tliis species is the smallest of the Black Cockatoos.
In the male bird the broad band of scarlet, which is seen on the tail
when expanded, is exceedingly beautiful and stiiking. With regard
to the nidification of the Leach Cockatoo, Gould merely states that " It
lays two eggs in the holes of the trees." It was not until 1883 that
I had the pleasure of first describing a specimen, which I received
from the discoverer, Mr. E. H. Lane, of Wambangalang, near Dubbo,
New South Wales. Dm-ing March, April, and May, 1880, he found
six nests, each containing but one egg or young. The nesting place
was usually a few feet down from the entrance in the trunk of a
eucalypt.
39

(5!0 A^ESTS AMD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

For further interesting notes of the nesting of the Leach, or
Gloss}' Cockatoo, T am indebted to the late Mr. George Bai-nard, of
Coomooboolaroo, Queensland, who at the time (June, 1891) informed
me that his sons had found the previous month no less than four
Black Cockatoos' nests, each with a single fresh egg. Two were
the Glossy Cockatoo, the others the Funereal species. The nests of
the former were from seventy to nmety feet from the ground, and the
eggs could almost be reached from the entrance.

This interesting Black Cockatoo would therefore appear to be an
autumn and winter breeder.

479.-^Callocephalon galeatum, Latham. — (405)
GANG-GANG COCKATOO.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 14.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 113.

Previous Descrftions of Eggs. — Keartland : Victorian Naturalist, vol.
XV., p. 63 (1898); Le Souef : Victorian Naturalist, vol. xvi.,
p. 102 (1899).

Geograjjliical Distribution. — South Queensland, New South Wales.
Victoria, Tasmania, and King Island.

Nest. — A hole or hollow in a tall tree in thick forest.

Eggs. — Clutch, foiu- to five ; round oval in shape ; texture of .shell
somewhat coarse; surface without gloss; colour, pure white. Dimen-
sions in inches: 1-31 x 1-08; according to Le Souef: (1) 1-28 x -92,
(2) 1-25 X -94.

Ohxervations. — The Gang-Gang (a native name) Cockatoo is a sin-
gular species, ranging through eastern forests, but not in great
numbers, from Sovith Queensland to Tasmania. A specimen of this
bird was secured on King Island, Bass Strait, during the expedition
of the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, 1887. Probably the bird is
nowhere more frequently met with than in the Snowy River district
and other places in Gippsland. Its most westcrh' range is the
Grampians.

Gould wrote long ago : " The paucity of information here given
(in his Handbook) will, I trust, be a sufficient hint to those favourably
situated for observing the habits of this species, that by transmitting
an account of the number of its eggs, or other particulars respecting
it, to any scientific journal, they would be promoting the cause of
science, and adding to the stock of ornithological knowledge."

To this day wo are very much in the dark about the Gang-Gang,
especially in reference to its nidification. Of course, like most
Cockatoos, it lays in holes in tall forest trees. Th'> <inlv egg I liave seen

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRAL' AN BIRDS. 5i j

is a specimen wliich Mr. Keartland lias kindly permitted me to re-
describe from his collection, said to have been taken from the spout
of a living eucal3-pt tree near Wan\agul, Victoria, 20th October, 1897.

The late Mr. Gregory Bateman infonncd me that he know of an
instance of five yoinig Gang-Gangs having l)ocn taken from a nest in
the Strathlxigio Ranges.

The Gang-Gang has the reputation of being easily tamed. It is not
unlike an African Parrot, with forehead, crest and cheeks scarlet.

480. — C.\CATUA GALERiT.\, Latham. — (391)
WHITE COCKATOO.

Figure. — Could : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. i.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. ii6.

Previous Descriptiom of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ;
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 4 (1865) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 250 (1SS9).

Geographictil Disi/rihtifion. — Australia in general, Tasmania and
King Island.

A^e.'it. — A hole in a tree usually.

E(/r/s. — Clutch, two to three, occasionally four ; elongated in fonn
or tapering towards one end ; texture somewhat coarse ; surface
glossy, and minutely pitted, with here and there a limy nodule ; coloiu',
white. Dimensions in inches of proper pairs: A (1) 2'04 x 1'28,
(2) 1-94 X 1-24; B (1) 1-92 x 1-35, (2) 1-68 x 1-32.

Oh.^ervntions. — There is no more widely distriljuted species of Aus-
tralian Cockatoos than the Great >Sulphur-crested or Wliite Cockatoo.
It is really an imposing creatiu'e, about twenty inches in total length.
Although the plumage is generally white, some of the underneath
parts, such as the wings and tail, wear a slight yellowish tinge. The
beautiful crest or top-knot, which can be erected at will, is pure yellow.
The whole of the light^coloured plumage is enhanced by powerful,
abrtiptly-curved black bill and black eyes, while the short feet are greyish
in colour. The harsh, discordant screech of these birds grates terribly on
one's ear; but it is a beautiful sight to see their snowy forms crowded
upon a tall eucalypt, or in more northern forests to witness them
clinging on to and feeding on the bunches of seeds upon the stems
under the frondage of elegant palms. The White Cockatoos which
I observed in the northern scrubs possessed, as a rule, more powerful
bills than those in southern parts. Perhaps, as Gould remarked, the
difference in the size of the mandibles may be according to the kind
of localities the birds have to search for their particular food.

Gould says the White Cockatoo sometimes places its eggs in fissures
of rocks wherever they present a- suitable site, and that the crevices

6j2 nests and eggs of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

of the white cliffs bordering the Murray River, in South Australia,
are annually resorted to foi this purpose by thousands of these
Cockatoos, the cliffs being completely honeycombed by them.
I have questioned many masters of the river steamers, as well as old
trappers, and they have no knowledge of the Cockatoos resorting to
the localitj' described, excepting Captain F. C. Hansen, who beUeves
some of the birds still lay there, because he has seen them in the
neighboiu-hood, and has also seen Galahs going in and out of the holes.

The long defunct Wcrribee tribe of aborigines called the White
Cockatoo " Ny-euk."

Usual breeding months August to November, but in some parts
of Queensland they lay as carlj' as June and as late as January. White
Cockatoos were found breeding in the red-gums on the coiu-se of the
Wimmera River, above Lake Albacutya, Victoria, about the middle of
October, 1898. The eggs (a pair in each case) were nearly incubated.

" Up a Tree," as we Australians say, would perhaps have been a
better motto for Mr. Le Souef's picture of Mr. Hariy Barnard
" Taking a White Cockatoo's Nest." (See illustration.)

481. — Cacatua leadbeateri, Vigors. — (392)
PINK COCKATOO.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 2.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit Mus., vol. xx., p. 123.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883); North; Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 251, pi. 14, fig. 2 (i8Sg).

Geof/rnj)hical Disfrihiifinn. — Interior of Australia in genei'al.

Nest. — Within a liole of a tree, sometimes in trees standing in
water.

Efff/n. — Clutch, two to four ; rotuidish in shape, slightly more
compressed at one end ; texture of shell comparatively fine ; surface
slightly glossy ; coloiu", pure white. Dimensions in inches of proper
clutches: A (1) 1-48 x 1-04, (2) 1-42 x Ml, (3) 1-41 x Ml;
B(l) 1-58 X 1-09, (2) 1-5 X 1-08, (3) 1-48 x 1-08.

Oli.'^cnriiioiix. — Besides being Iiighlv prized as an aviary bird, this
Cockatoo is undoubtedly the most elegant and handsome of its kind.
What person has not admired its general white plumage, so delicately
and beautifully tinted with rose-colour? The roseate hue is more
pronounced on the forehead and portions of the underneath parts.
Each feather of the crest, when erected, shows crimson, with a spot
of yellow in the centre, and is tipped with white. The bill is a light
liorny colour, and feet dark-brown, and, if I remember rightly, the
lovely eyes are ruby-coloured.

TAKING A \V111T1£ COCKATOO'S NEST.
Ft urn a Photo by D. Le Soui/.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

613

Inland, from east to west of the southern part of Australia, this
most beautiful Cockatoo is foimd. The bird is not unfrequeutly called
Major Mitchell's Cockatoo, or the " Wecjuggier of bushmen. I well
remember the first time I saw the bu'd in the open. I was duck
shooting, along the Lower Murraj-, when one alighted on a t-all dead
stump in the centre of a lagoon, where, with noisy voice, it displayed
its " pink coloured wings and glowing crest."

How an explorer's journeyings in the dreary desert must be en-
livened at times by the appearance of these glorious birds ! and
evidently the Pink Cockatoo is a lover of the desert, for during the
Calvert Expedition in the North-west, Mr. Keartland noted that the
birds were only found in the desert, where morning and evening they
were observed flying to and from water, or feeding on the bushes and
ground. Tliey were usually in pairs, and were seldom missed neax
the native wells. The birds, however, proved vei-y shy, and flew round
several times to see that all was safe before ahghting.

From Mr. A. J. North we learn that Mr. K. H. Bennett foimd
this handsome bird breeding plentifully in the interior of New South
Wales, between the Lachlau and Darling Rivers, resorting usually to
lofty eucalypts for the pm-pose. In 'Victoria, the timber standing in
Lake Leaghur, off the Loddou River, used to be a favourite breeding
locaUty for the Pink Cockatoo.

More recently (middle of October, 1898) Dr. Charles Ryan,
Mr. Charles French, juur., and my son found Pink Cockatoos breeding
on the edge of Pine Plains, North-western district of Victoria. The
nests examined had either newly-hatched young or eggs nearly incu-
bated. One nest was only about ten feet from the ground, in tlie
hollow top of a dead pine stump.

I heard of the eggs of this Cockatoo being taken in the ueighbom--
hood of Cooper's Creek, in June (1889). It is probable that the usual
breeding season is the same as that of the Wlute Cockatoo.

482. — Cacatua gymnopis, Sclater.
BARE-EYED COCKATOO.

Figure. — Gould — Sharpe : Birds of New Guinea, vol. v., pi. 46.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 127.

Ge(i(jraii]iir<il DLstrihiiffoii. — Interiors of Queensland, New South
■Wales, and South Australia.

Ne.^t. — A hole or hollow in a tree.

■£','/,'/■•>■■ — Clutch, four ; rouuchsh in form ; texture somewhat coarse ;
sm-face glossy and minutely pitted ; colour, white. Dimensions in inches
of a pair from the Barrier Range (New South "Wales): (1) 1-5 x M8
(2) 1-45 X 1-12.

6i4

NESTS AND EGGS OV AVSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Observations. — Previously I had got somewhat astray about the
distributiou and the eggs of this interesting Cockatoo. I now believe
the birds mentioned by me in the " Proceedings of the Royal Society "
(1890) were i-eferable to the Western Loug-billed species (Licmetis
pastinatorj. Duiing my visit to Western Australia I examined one
or two caged birds which had not the lengthened upper mandible,
therefore, without further proof, I mistook the birds for the
Bare-eyed species. However, I believe it is a fact that some of the
Western Long-billed birds in their native state possess shortened or
rounded upper mandibles, caused by continual use in procuring certain
kinds of food.

The Bare-eyed Cockatoo takes its name from the bluish patch uf
naked skin round the eye, which place is wliilish in the Blood-stained
Cockatoo, and it is the larger bird of the two. I inadvertently trans-
posed the colours when describing some eggs before the Field Naturalists'
Club of Victoria, last year. Although I have given a somewliat general
chstribution for the Bare-eyed Cockatoo, the only actual place I know
where it exists is the region of the Barrier Range, on the borders of
New South Wales and South Austraha. But accorcUng to Dr. Shai-pe
it was the species found by Captain Sturt, the explorer, in immense
flocks at Depot Creek, Central Australia.

483. — Cacatua sanguinea, Gould. — (393)
BLOOD-STAINED COCKATOO.

figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 3.

Reference. — C;it. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. liS.

Previous Descriplioii of Ei;gs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist

GeiKjraphical Dialrihution. — Northern Teriilory, Queensland, New
South Wales, South, West (?), and North-west Australia.

NeM. — In a hole in a tree; sometimes in timber standing in a lagoon
or swamp.

Egyx. — Clutch, three to four; oval inclined or roundish in shape;
texture of shell somewhat coarse ; surface glossy, in some examples
rough, with limy nodules; colour, white. Dimensions in inches of a
clutch from Cooper's Creek (South Australia): (1) 1-44 x 1 -OS,
(2) 1-4 X 1-07, (3) 1-33 X -98; of a pair from the Gulf of Ctirpentaria
district : 1-6 X M 4, (2) 1-45 X 1-09.

Oliacrvdiiiiiix. — Tlie Blood-stained Cockatoo is a dweller of the
interior, especially tlic great norlliern plains, where in some favourite
localities it may be seen in thoiisanils in a flock. This interesting little
bird is also gregarious throughout the breeding season.

NESTS AND EGGS QF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. O13

The lii-sL uggs of Lho Biood-sUiiued Cockatoo that reached my
collection were taken in the interior, 1864, by Mr. A. A. DOmbrain.

Mr. Herbert Kenny, while at Cooper's Creek, wrote me : " At times
the Blood-stained Cockatoos are to be seen in immense flocks. In the
season you may see the blacks bringing home then- dilly bags full of
eggs and young ones of all sizes, from those just out of the shell to
fiilly-iledgcd ones." Mr. Kenny sent me a set of eggs with the
following interesting data : — " Eggs of Blood-stained Cockatoo taken
from giim-trce in lunamincka water-hole. Cooper's Creek, within a few
yards of spot where Burke, the explorer, perished. ±he nest contained
four eggs, which varied in size. Taken 17th August, 1890. Saw
blacks with eggs latter end of July."

Far north Blood-stained Cockatoos resort to the holes of the cooli-
bar, or flooded box ^a species of eucalypt), the principal tree in the
district. After a certain age the young are left during the day, and
are fed at evening, when the congi-egation of birds returns from the
plains. The young ai-e then fed in the usual Cockatoo manner, by
the parent birds pumiiiug half-digested food from their crops into
the yoimg ones mouths.

Here follows Mr. Price Fletcher's most giapliic description of the
Blood-stained Cockatoo at home, written for " ihe Queenslander,"
(1878): — "These Lesser Corellas are useful as water finders, as stated
in my previous paper on water-finding birds. I have a particular
affection for them, as I once found a large hole and a fine f)iece of
country through them. I was travelling up a creek in what was then
unknown land ; it is some years ago now, and the scene I am about
describing has vanished before those more utilitarian occupants, sheep
and cattle. The season was diy, there had been no winter rains, and
I was hunting for water. I had followed up the creek until I thought
I was at the last water, and had camped; the creek here split into
two feeders, both had heavy timber on, and ought to have had water,
yet I had followed one branch for some seven miles, and had to return
without finding any ; the creek got diier and drier, more stony and
less hkely to hold. I was dispirited, for the other branch I had also
gone up three miles, and it seemed of the same character ; and my
horses being tired, and night closing in, I had retunled to my present
camp. It was at a wretched little dirty puddle, and, not having found
any water for many miles down the creek, as well, I had detennined
to give up fm-ther search ; when just at siuidown a very large flock
of these Corellas came flying by me and up the creek, and to my
suii^rise went along the veiy branch I had travelled up so far.
Knowing so well the habits of these birds, and that they rejoiced in
making a ' camp ' or roosting place at the top-water of a creek, I was
delighted, for I knew that at this time of day they were not going
on to the plains to feed, but must be going to water and to roost.
Intently and anxiously I watched that flock ; I am sure I kept sight
of them for five miles — not, indeed, really, but in this way : the sun
was just setting, and the beautiful snow-white of their plumage, as
they twisted and twirled in their fhght, caught these setting rays and
reflected the hght like a flash from a moving mirror, and I kept

5i6 NESTS AND EGGS OP AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

catching gleams of this white cloud long after the flock was otherwise
iindistiuguishable ; and they were still flying up the creek. Tliis
decided me, and I determined on the monow to go after them until
I f oimd them. Vei-y early dawn found me stirring ; I had done the
seven miles I had previously travelled by an hour after sunrise, and
yet there were no signs of the birds. Another two miles, and the
creek looked less and less hkely for water ; the channel was degene-
rating in size and depth, the timber was getting tliiuner and less
continuous, and I began to think I had trusted too much to my
presumed knowledge of the habits of my Corella friend. I felt
dispirited ; I had left camp without any breakfast (a very foolish thing
for anyone to do, if he can help it, for there is nothing like a full
stomach to give joluck), for water was bad, and anxiety had taken
away my appetite. I was now nine miles from the morning's camp,
the horses were thirsty, and the creek looked so unlikely that I was
just upon the point of turning back when my eye caught the white
gleams, so well known, of the birds' wings. It was a long way ofi, at
least three miles up the creek, but there was no mistake, there were
my friends of the night before. With great glee I urged on, and the
gleam resolved itself into flocks, and the flocks into innumerable indi-
viduals. What strange white trees are those ahead? Surely they
cannot be the Corellas ou them : yes, indeed they are, a perfect forest
of Cockatoos ! My heart beat high with pleasui'able excitement ;
visions of an interior lake, and a consequent happy homestead, rose
before me, and I felt pleased that my tnist in my feathered friends
had not deceived me. Another halt, and my astonishment was indeed
great; they were really trees ahead, and, instead of leaves, they were
loaded with Corellas. What extraordinary numbers! Excitement
made me cjuicken my pace from the usual explorer's walk to a canter,
and I was rewarded by the sight of a fine hole of water and discoveiy
of a veritable Cockatoos' haunt; the home of the Curella!

" Oh ! the noise, the frightful noise, as I rode under the trees to
tiie water's edge ! What a babel of tongues, what incessant scrcccliing,
what a whirling, flying, moving mass of noise ; 50,000 Cockatoos all
screaming at once ! Just for one moment try and realize it,
reader, and you will involuntarily put your fingers to stop yoiu'
ears. 'What incredible numbers; the air is wliite with them,
the trees are white with them, and the giound round the
edge of the water is white with them ! I had seen Cockatoo
' holes ' before, but never such a scene as this ; it was evident 1 had
hit upon a favourite haunt, and one in which tiiey were not often
disturbed, even by blacks. I determined to camp, if it was only to
see the birds; but in half-an-liour they had all gone

" About evening the birds began to rctiu'n, and I detennined to
try and estimate their nvunbers ; the task was not so difficult as at
first sight it appeared, for the birds settle on the trees and remain
i|ui(t, with the exception of odd ones flying down now and again to
(Irink. Well, I counted about 100 as they sat close together on the
branches, then from that I estimated the number that were on half
the tree, and made 750, double that is 1,500 on one tree; the tiees

NESTS AND EGGS 01- AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 6i;

were mucli about the same size, and there were fifty of them occupied,
that makes a grand total of 75,000 ; and besides that, a large flock
had flo\vn away to roost elsewhere. No wonder then that in my
previous papers I said that I should, more than once, have to bring
before my readers the extreme prolificness of life in these regions.

■' Still this was an exti-a large flock ; the water having ckied up
for so many miles around, had caused this enormous congregation.
I never before or since saw anything like the present numbers. Living
is easy work for them, for the plains are covered with a great variety
of seeds of herbs and grasses, and besides these they also feed on the
roots of various plants, which their long beaks enable them to dig up
without difficulty."

Mr. Keartland reports that the Blood-stained Cockatoo, on the
Fitzroy River (North-west), usually lays during August and September,
and that in November the natives secure immense numbers of the
nestlings, which they regard a« excellent food.

484. — Cac.\tua eoseicapilla, Vieillot. — (394)
ROSE-BREASTED COCKATOO (GALAH).

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, foL, vol. v., pi. 4.

Rtfcrence. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mas., vol. xx., p. 132.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1S48) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 10 (1S65) ; Ramsay : I'roc. Linn.
Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. vii., p. 53 (i8Si) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., pi. 14, fig. 3 (1889), also Trans. Roy. Soc, South
Australia, vol. xxii., p. 163 (1898).

Geographical Distributiuii. — Australia in general.

Xent. — Within a hole in a tree, usually near or standing in water.

Ef/(/s. — Clutch, four to seven, but usually five ; round oval in shape ;
texture of shell comparatively fine ; sm-face slightly glossy, occasionally
with limy nodules ; colour, pure white. Dimensions in inches of a
pair : (1) 1-4 x 1-04, (2) 1-39 x 1-06 ; of a rounder pair : (1) 135 x 1-09,
(2) 1-34 X 1-08.

Observations. — Tliis lovely Cockatoo is distributed generally through-
out Australia, especially in the interior provinces, where it may be seen
at times in immense flocks. What an enchanting sight to witness
huuch'eds of these birds on the wing, wheeling low, and simultaneously
showing their silvei-y grey backs, then a flash of roseate-tinted under-
surfaccs !

Govdd records that during the years 1839 and 1840 the Rose-breasted
Cockatoo bred in considerable nimibers in the holes of large gum-trees
skirting the Nundewar Range, and afforded an abundant supply of yoimg
ones for the earners and stock-men to transport to Sydney, where they
were sold for a considerable sum, to be shipped to England.

Qjg NESTS AXD LGGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

The nesting places of the Rose-breasted Cockatoo or Galah are easily
found, because the bark smTounding the hole is peeled off all round for
some distance. Trees near the nest are often similarly marked by the
birds. The young are fed by tlieii' parents long after the former have
quitted their nests.

Captain F. C. Hanson (of the river steamer " Maggie "), a great lover
of birds, infonns me he has seen Galahs or Rose-breasted Cockatoos going
in and out of the holes in the clifis of the Murray between Morgan and
the Victori.iu boundary. I suppose it cannot be possible that tliese are
the bu'ds referred to by Gould as the Wliite Cockatoos !

Mr. J. F. Carmichaol, Narlga, New South Wales, furnished me witli
a curious note of a pau' of tame Galahs that got together portions of old
paper, nested, and reared two young ones.

On the habits of lairds coming to water, Mi'. H. W. Ford has kindly
sent uie the following interesting remarks : — " The Galah comes in from
suniise for about two hours, same in evening from about two hours of
sunset till near twihght. They fly right into water, settle round by
thousands and drink, and then break up into flocks and fly away to
feeding grounds or roosting. I look on the Galah as one of the best
guides to water in Western New South Wales that a bushman can get.
The Galah is never more than ten miles from water in summer, and usually
less. Always goes to water morning and evening — up to two hoxu's
after sunrise ami same before sunset. A person has only to watch these
birds and direction of flight to find water at times stated."

During one of his periodical trips to tlie interior, Mr. W. Colenso
noticed a hole where a Black Duck was nesting, about seventy feet from
tlie ground, in a red gum-tree by a river. A pair of Galahs " jumped "
the nesting-hole, and when it was examined, it was found that some of
the Duck's eggs were of course smashed.

Among Mr. Keartland's North-west notes, under the heading of the
Rose-breasted Cockatoo, one reads as follows : - — " Near Lake Way these
birds were first noted on July 13th ; but a few days later Mr. Jones*
discovered two of their nests, from whicli he dislodged the birds. Sub-
sequently, in crossing the desert, a number of other nests was foiuid,
and on October l.'itli Mr. Wells took three fledged young ones from a
hollow tree on a sandliill. Diu'ing February and March several nests,
containing eitlier eggs or young, were found near the Fitzroy River.
It will thas be seen that these birds have not only a wide range in the
north-west, but that their breeding time is equally extensive. The birds
were foimd in great flocks at all watei-s, and were so tame that no
difficulty was experienced in shooting a niunber for the pot, five or six
fref[Uently falling to one shot. Wlien well stewed they form a very
])alatabh; dish."

Mr. T. Carter tells me these Cockatoos breed in holes in mangroves
on the coast between Gascoyne and Wooraniel Rivers.

•.Subsequently during that terrible journey Mr. G. L. Jones, unfortunately,
was lost, and perished from thirst.

XESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTA'AUAA' BIRDS. 6lc;

485. — LiCMETis NASiCA, Tcuuuinck. — (395)
LONG-BILLED COCKATOO (CORELLA).

Figure. — Gould ; Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 5.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 133.

I'revious Descriptions of Esss.—GovAA: Birds of Australia (1848),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 11 (iSbs) ; Campbell: Southt-rn
Science Record (1SS3); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 252, pi.
14, fig. 4 (1889).

Giii'jraphical Bislribution. — Northern TciTitory, Interior Queens-
land (probably), New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.

Xcsf. — At the bottom of a hole in a large gum-tree (cucalypt).

Eijijs. — Clutch, one to foiu', but usually two or three ; round oval in
shape ; texture of shell somewhat coarse ; surface glossy ; colour, pure
white. Dimensions in inches of a pair : (1) 1-57 x I'lD, (2) 1-57 x 1-11.

Observations. — ^The Long-billed Cockatoo may be described as a bird
of quaint appeai-ance, possessing (as its name implies) a long, whitish-
colomcd bill, 1^ inches in length, and wearing a naked patch of bluish
skin roimd the eyes. The general plumage is white, except a percep-
tible waah of yellow on portions of the underneath parts, which colour is
not noticeable excejJt on close inspection. There is also a small patch
of red across the face; eyes light-brown. Total length of a .specimen
is between 16 inches and 17 inches.

This Cockatoo is chiefly an interior species of the eastern half of
Austraha, but it has been recorded in districts south of Mclbomiie.
Years ;igo, thousands itsed to breed near the Miu'ray River, exclusively
in the red giuu-trees ( Eucahjptus rust rata), sometimes three or four nests
in one tree. To the late Mr. Gregory Bateman, an accurate obsei-ver,
who spent much time trapping amongst these feathered crowds, I have
been indebted for most interesting notes.

The disappeaiunce or the retirement towards the interior of the
Long-billed Cockatoo or Corella is no doubt due to the depastunng ef
stock in the old haunts, the yam roots and the jsarticular food plants of
the birds being all destroyed.

if a pair of birds be seen perching on a single tree, one may be satisfied
they possess a nesting-hole in the tree or in an adjacent one.

The young are mostly fed with the soft, larvee-like seeds of a pelar-
gonium or wild geranium. The birds usually go out in the morning
from eight o'clock tiU eleven to feed upon the plain ; and again from
about five o'clock till dusk. Sometimes the young are heard being fed
in the holes after dark. The Parrot tribe feed their young like Pigeons,
by pumping- up partly digested food into the young ones' mouths. To
the uninitiated it would seem a very awkward business for the Corella,
with its lengthened upper mandible, to feed its tiny squabs.

The Long-billed Cuckoo lays generally towards the end of August,
incubation lasting about a month ; and when the young are about five

620 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

weeks old, or about the first week in November, the birds are ready for
the market. In the young, at first the pinkish skin shines tlirough the
down, which grows yellowish in colour and into a thicker covering before
the feathers sprout.

It is stated, with some feasibility, that youthful birds lay clutches
containing small numbers of eggs and occupy the lower trees or holes,
while the older birds deposit the full complement of eggs in the largest
and tallest timber.

I once examined in Mr. Chas. Fox's shop. Eastern Market, a hybrid
between a Corella and a White Cockatoo, the progeny of a mated
pair whicli was observed flying about in New South Wales. There
were two young in the nest, one exactly like the White Cockatoo, and
the other — an exceedingly fine bird — most resembling its Corella parent,
but with a decided short crest, orange in coloiu, and with facial markings
also orange, instead of x-ed, as in the Corella.

486. LlCMETlS PASTINATOR, Gould (396)

DAMPIER COCKATOO.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 134.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Proc. Roy. Soc, Victoria,
vol. iii., new ser., p. 4 (1S90), also Victorian Naturalist (1893).

Geographical Distribution. — West and North-west Australia.

Nest. — Usually a hole of a tree, or crevice of rock ; but occasionally
in an ant-hillock.

Eyya. — Clutch, three to four ; oval or round oval in shape ;
texture of shell comparatively fine ; surface glossy ; coloiu, pure
wliite, more or less stained with the dust of the nest. Dimensions
in inches of a pair; (1) 163 x 1-15, (2) 1-52 x 1-14.

Observations. — " All ornithologists now admit that there are two
species of the genus Licmetis ; one inhabiting the western and the other
the eastern portion of Australia. Living examples of both have been
for some time in the menagerie of the Zoological Society of London,
where their differences are far more apparent than in the skins which
from time to time have been sent to this country " (Gould).

This species is probably the oldest known Au.sti-aliaii Cockatoo, for
when the navigator, Dampier, in August, lO'J'J, was olT the western coast,
he saw birds flying from the niaiuJaud over to islands which form the
Archipelago now bearing his name, and recorded there wa>s a. ' sort of
whiti^ paiTot which (lew a great many together." A corresjxindent on
the western coast iiifonns me the Cockatoos st ill fly " a great many
together " in August and September to breed on the islands, where they
nest in the holes and crevices of rocks. llowtver, in the season ofl8'Jl,
on account of the prevailing ckought, they did not visit the islands as

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 62I

usual. Near Point CloateSj the Westom Long-bills are said by the
natives to breed in munbers in the clifls on the sea coast, whei'e a water-
hole is situated. Mr. Tom Carter has obsen'ed birds passing over from
inland towards that direction. He also states they breed in numbers
in the hollow stems of mangrove-trees on the islands in Exmouth Gulf.

The fu"st aiithcnticated eggs of this species were three in number,
taken by Mr. Carter, on the 22nd September, 1888, from the hollow spout
of a gum-tree on the Minilga River.

The birds would appear to be decidedly erratic in the choice of a
situation for a nest, for aboxit the beginning of October, 1892, some
twenty-five miles inland, Mr Carter found the young of Western Long-
billed Cockatoo in a hole within a large white ants' hillock, although gum-
trees were fairly plentiful in the locality. On the 15th October, 1893,
Mr. Carter took a full clutch of four eggs from a hollow tree on his station
near Point Cloatrs.

Mr. Carter again wrote : " I was out last week and found a Cockatoo's
nest with three eggs, beyond reach. I was out again with a bullock
team, a few days after, carting timber, but something had sucked the eggs
and killed the Cockatoo.'' No doubt an iguana, was the culpiit.

The chief breeding months are September and October, bvit like those
of its western ally, may be said to extend from August to November.
However, it is rej>orted that young, in down, have been seen on the upper
Murchison in April.

Mr. Woodward, P.G.S., informed me he had seen aborigines taking
these Cockatoos from the hollows of flooded-giuns (eucalypts) on Dalgety
Creek, Ga.scoyne district, and I believe it must be the same species that
frequents the islands in Nickol Bay. It is reported that Cockatoos are
niimerovis on Picard Island, seven miles from Cossack, breeding in the
rocks.

Sub-family — CALOPSiTTACiNiE.

487. — Calopsittacus nov« hollandi^, Gmelin. — (440)
COCKATOO PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol, v., pi. 45.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 135.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 85 {1S65) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 254, pi. 14, fig. 9 (1889).

Gfugrn plural Distrihiition. — Australia in general.

Neiit. — On the dry wood dust within a hole or hollow of a. tree, u.sually
in open forest. Occasionally more than one pair of bii'ds breed in the
same tree.

(522 ^'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Eggx. — Clutch, four to seven, usually five; oval or elliptirally
inclined in shape ; texture of shell fine ; surface glossy ; colour, pure
white. Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch: (!) 108 x -76,
(2) 1-07 X -77, (3) 1-06 x -76, (4) 1-05 x -74, (5) 1-04 x -75.

OhxcrvationR. — This singular and elegant species has been found
throughout the length and breadth of Australia; but it is more addicted
to the plains and interior portions, moving about according to the sea-sons,
when they sometimes fly in gi-cat flocks. I believe the birds were
numerous in Riverina during the winter of 1896. Its little top-knot
gives it a sprightly appearance, while tli(^ beauty of the greyish dress,
relieved with white on the wings of the male, is enhanced by the lemon-
yellow about his face, particularly on the cheeks. In the female the face
is not so brightly coloured, being of a dull olive. Total length, about
12 inches or 13 inches.

Gould states that the beautiful Cockatoo Parrot is strictly migi-atory,
making simultaneous movements southwards to within 100 miles of the
coast in September, an-iving in the York district. Western Australia,
precisely at the same time that it appears on the Livei-pool plains in the
east, and after rearing a^ numerous progeny the whole retire northward
again in February and March.

During the summer of 1839, Gould foimd these birds breeding in all
the apple-tree ( Ajitfophorn } flats on the Upper Hunter and adjacent
localities.

In Central Australia, loth Jiily, 1894, during the progress of the
Horn Scientific Expedition, Mr. Keartland states he saw large numbers
of young Cockatoo Pan'ots. One old pair was supplying the wants of
a brood of six as they clustered on a di-y branch. Mr. Richard J. Dalton,
on the Paroo, New South Wales, 1896, obser\'ed that the Parrots were
breeding in May, and again from September to November. Nestlings
were plentiful on the Fitzroy River (North-west) during January (1897).
The late Mr. T. Augustus Forbcs-Lcith, in his pleasant little treatise on
" Parrots of Victoinaj" mentions that he knew of several instances of this
Parrot breeding in aviaries and rearing yovmg.

On the habits of birds coming to water, Mr. H. W. Ford, F.G.S.,
informs me that " the Grey and Yellow Top-knotted Pan'ot ( ' Quarrion,'
native name among bushmen) flies round about water-holes for some
time, then settles on a tree near the water. Another wotild fly round
screeching all the time, and down to the edge of the water, take one gulp
and off as if all the hawks in creation were after it, screeching all
the time. The same antics apply to the Shell Pa.iTakeet. Both these
birds come in by flocks of dozens in the afternoon, and always the same
performance at drinking time as far as I have seen, and I have seen them
dozens of times."

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 623

FAMILY— PSITTACID^ . PARROTS.
Sub-family — PAL.«:oRNiTHiN.fi.

488. — PoLYTELis BARRABANDi, Swainson. — (406)

GREEN-LEEK PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 15.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 47S.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883), also Nests and Eggs Australian Birds, pi. 2, fig. 406
(1883).

Geoijraphiral Diffri/intion. — ^South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria and South Australia.

N^e.if. — Within a hole or hollow in a tree, usually by a stream.

E;/r/x. — Clut^'h, fovu- to five ; elliptical in shape ; texture of shell
somewliat fine ; surface glossy ; colour, pure white. Dimensions in
inches : TIT x 0.

Ohsservntions. — This most elegant and exquisitely coloured species is
a somewhat scarce PaiTakeet, being limited to isolated localities inland
from South Queensland down to Soutli Australia.

The Barrahand PaiTakeet, or, as it is called, the " Green-leek," is
well named on account of its general gra.ss-green plumage, the beauty
of wliicli is intrnsified by the forehead, cheeks, and throat being of rich
gamboge-yellow, and immediately beneath the throat is a conspicuous
crescent of scarlet. The female is a little inferior in colouring to the
male. Total length of a bird, about 16 inches. The bird is a striking
adornment to an aviary. In Gould's day they were frequently brought
down to Sydney by draymen, from the Argyle country, where these
beautiful Pan-akeets were not uncommon at the time,

I hav.- only a solitary egg in my collection, taken in the Wimmera
district by a friend of the late Mr. H. A. Smith, Batesford.

489. PoLYTELIS ALEXANDRA, Gould. (407)

ALEXANDRA PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., supp., pi. 62.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 479.

Previous Description of Eggs. — North : Rec. Austn. Mus., vol. ii.,
p. 19 (1892).

Geographical Distribution. — Interiors of Northern Territory and
South, West, and North-west Australia.

624

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Jfeaf. — Within a hole in a tree, usually near a watercourse.
Occasionally several pairs of birds breed in the same tree.

Egr/s. — Clutch, four to five ; vai-y in shape from round oval to oval ;
texture of shell fine ; siu'faee exceedingly glossy ; coloiu', pure white.
Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch : (1) !■! x "9, (2) 1-09 x -O,
(3) 1-05 X -88, (4) 1-04 X -92; of odd examples, round oval; Mx'92:
oval; 1-14 X -85.

Ohservafiotif!. — For its elegant shape, quiet and beautiful colouring —
chiefly jest.hetic greens, — in addition to being difficult to obtain, this
Parrot is deemed a rare bird. It is a denizen of the far interior and
North-west deserts. On account of the rose-pink patch on its chin and
throat it should have been called the Rose-throated Parrakeet.

This lovely species, described and dedicated by Gould to the Princess
of Wales, wa.s first discovered by the Stuart Exploi'ation Party, 1862,
when Mr. F. C. Waterhouse shot three birds at Howell's Ponds, at the
edge of the Stuart Plains, Northern Territoi-y.

Nothing was heard regarding the bird till a communication from
Mr. S3'monds Clark appeared in the " South Australian Register," 23rd
August, 1890, which was aftei-wards reprinted in " The Victorian
Naturalist," mentioning that Mr. T. C. Margarey had brought a pair
of live Alexandra PaiTakoots to Adelaide. Tlie birds were taken the
previous season from a nest at Crown Point, above Charlotte Waters.

The Alexandra Parrakeet was brought prominently under notice
again in 1891, when Governor the Earl of Kintoi'e and party crossed
Australia by the transcontinental route. Out of a small flock three
were shot by Dr. E. C. Stirhng, near Newcastle Waters.

Subsequently a fine series of these birds was procured by
Mr. G. A. Keartland, the ornithologist of the Honi Scientific Expedition,
at the McDonnell Ranges, 1894. The season immediately following
many yoimg birds were collected in the interior and forwarded to various
members of the party, one being exhibited at the annual show of the
Victorian Poultry and Kennel Club, August, 1895, by Mr. Keartland.
who also received eggs, and to whom I am indebted for an example. He
informs me the majority of eggs he received were taken during or about
September. Mr. A. Zeitz, Assistant Curator of the Adelaide Museum,
was successful in getting the Alexandra PaiTak(>ets to brei>d in captivity.
The female alone rears the young.

During the examination of an excellent series of skins of Alexandra
PaiTakeets, obtained by the Horn Expedition, Mr. North discovered that
the end of the third primary of either wing of the adult male was,
curiously enough, spatula-shaped. Most ornithologists will agree that
Mr. North has over estimated the importance of this peculiar difference
(only specific at most) by creating the new genus. Sjmfliii/itmix, for the
lovely bird. One might as well diaiige the generic name of the Meiiitrn
(ifhcrti because the two large lyre-.shaped feathei's of the tail, so con-
spicuous in the males of the other species, are absent.

Diunng the Calvert Expedition (1896). the habitat of this desert
beauty wa.s found to extend to West and North-west parts of the

A/ESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTKAUAN BIRDS. 53 1;

Continent. Mr. Keartlaiul states* : " On tlio ilying trip made by
Messre. L. A. Wells and G. L. Jones, during August, they found numbers
of these birds about one hundred miles nortJi-east of Moiuit Bates, and
on several subsequent occa.sions, but when wo traversed the same track
about five weeks later I only saw them twice, and succeeded in shooting
one pair. Again, in April a pair was seen witliin two miles of Johanna
Springs, and several days later a flock of about twenty was noted in the
same neighbourhood. They appear to be confined to the most di-eary
desert country, and must either travel long distances to water or require
very little of it. In the stomachs of those opened, the seed of the
Triixlia predominated. When noted they were disturbed whilst feeding
amongst the Spinifet, and usually perched on the nearest tree, in-espec-
tive of species. Mr. Wells has since reported seeing several witliin a
few miles of the Fitzroy River."

490. — PoLYTELis MEL.\NrRA, Vigors. — (408)

BLACK-TAILED PARRAKEET (ROCK PEBBLER)

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. i6.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 479.

Previous Description of Eri^s. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist (1888J.

Geographical Distrihufion. — New South Wales, Victoria, South and
West Australia.

Nest. — Within a hole or hollow of a tree, iisually bordering a stream
in the interior, or in the crevice of a cliff, notably on the Lower Murray
River.

Eiigs. — Clutch, foiu- to six ; roundish in shape ; texture of shell com-
jiaratively fine ; svu-face glossy in some instances, with limy nodules ;
colour, pure wliite. Dimensions in inches of proper clutches :
A (1) 1-26 X -9, (2) 1-24 X -98, (3) 1-2 x -98, (4) 1-19 x -96; B (1)
1-17 X -91, (2) 1-16 X -91, (3) 1-12 x -91, (4) Ml x -95, (5) 1-07 x -91.

Ohservations. — The habitat of the very elegant Black-tailed PaiTakeet
is from east to west across the southern part of Australia, frtqvienting
flats in the vicinity of permanent water. It is not a common species,
and usually is seen in the interior provinces, where it may be found
sometimes breeding in company with other PaiTots in hollow trees over-
hanging the Wimmera and Avoca Rivers, and such Uke places.

On th? Wimmera, north of Lake Albacutya, Dr. Chas. Ryan and
parLy found the beautiful Black-tailed PaiTakeets breeding about the
first week of October^ 1898, when all the clutches were almost incubated.
One n:st contained a pair of young and foiu" addled eggs.

*Trans. Rov. Soc, South .\ustralia, vol. xxii.. part ii., pp. 130-1 (iSqS).

40

52G NESTS A WD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

The late Captain F. C. Hansen (of the Murray steamer, " Maggie ")
informed me that he has found the Black-tailed Parrakcet nesting in the
Broken Bend cliffs (mnllee cliffs) of the River Miu'ray, near Wentworth,
also in the cliffs lower down, between Morgan, South Australia, and the
border of Victoria. Captain Hansen also states that generally only a
pair of young is hatched out of a clutch of foui" eggs, and that a pair of
old birds rears two broods a season in the same nest.

Mr. W. White, Reedbeds (South Australia), whose roomy aviary
contains many beautiful Parrots, has a liandsome Black-tailed Parrakeet
which has reared several clutches of young Cockatoo Pan-akeets. As
soon as they were hatched by their proper parents they were handed
over (evidently by mutual consent) to the Polytelis.

491. — Ptistes erythroptekus, Gmelin. — (410)
RED-WINGED LORY.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. i8.

Reference.- — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus.. vol. xx., p. 481.

Prei'ious Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 38 (1865) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 256, pi. 14, fig. 5 (1889).

Geographical Distribution. — Queensland and New South Wales.

Nest. — Within a hollow bole or branch of a tall tree, usually a
eucalypt, and not unfrequently by a stream.

Eggs. — Clutch, four to five, usually foiu" ; round oval in shape ;
texture of shell comparatively fino ; siu-facc slightly glossy ; colour, pure
wbitc\ Dimensions in inches of a clutch : (1) 1-32 x 1-05," (2) 1-32 x 1-04,
(3) 1-28 X 1-06.

Observdtions. — This most lovely Parrot is restricted to Queensland
and the northern part of Now South Wales. Not without reluctance
I have shot the beautiful species for museum purposes, while travei-sing
the eucalyptus flats on the Lower Fitzroy. I soon learnt to locate the
bird by its pecidiar " chink chink " like notes ; and when a bird is seen
in its living dress of exquisite vcrditer green, dark back, and brilliant
scarlet shoiddcrs, bending with its own weight the green bough to which
it clings, I can well understand Gould when he wrote — " It is beyond
my power to describe the extreme beauty of the appearance of the Red-
winged Lory when seen among the silvery branches of acacia, particularly
when the flocks comprise a large; number of males, the gorgeous scarlet
of whose .shoulders offers so striking a contrast to the siUTotmding objects."

I understand that Gould himself .shot the Red-winged Loiy on the
Liverpool Plains of New Rnutli Wales, tlierefore it .seems unaccountable
that Dr. Ramsay should have omilted such an important bird from tlie
column of his own Slate in his "Tabular List." Mr, North met with it

A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 62'

on the Xamoi River, November, 189G, and states he has known its eggs
to have been taken from nesting places in trees on the Began, Macquarie
and Warrego Rivers.

Many years before I visited Coomoohoolaroo, Queensland, I was
indebted to the late Mi*. Geo. Barnard for the eggs of tliis species, which
is said to breed from Ootober to .Tannary.

Mr. Robert H. Adams, writing to me from Goondiwindi, Queensland,
statis : " PaiTots here seem veiT fearful of iguanas, — at lea.st that is the
opinion I have formed, because they choose trees close to houses or tents.
Til two cases within my knowledge, PaiTots — one a Rosella and the other
a R' d-wingrd Lory — nested over tents occupied by men working for me,
and a pair of Red-wings had tlieir nest in a tree in my back yai'd, to which
the clothes line is attached. The Red-wings here appear to nest, not in
spouts, but in big hollow trees, climbing down and laying on the iiibbish
within. Its nest is thus peculiarly open to the attacks of iguanas."

Mr. L.au. in his MS., states : " One peculiaiity I must mention regard-
ing thd Red-shouldered Parrot. A female of this species had a male of the
King Lory for a husband, which, on accoimt of his great beauty, was shot
without mercy. On another occasion I happened to see a pair of Red-
wing Lories perched near a hole. I shot the male, not thinking they
intended breeding. Tlie female flew away, evidently veiy soiTowful,
but behold, she returned in a few days with a new husband, and soon a
batch of eggs was laid."

492. — Ptistes cocciNEOPTERUS, Gould. — (411)
CRIMSON-WINGED LORY.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 482.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — North : Trans. Roy. See, South
Australia, vol. xxii., p. 131 (1898); Le Souef : Ibis, p. 360
(1899), also Victorian Naturalist, vol. xvi., p. 71 {1899).

Gengraphical Distribution. — North-west Altstralia, Northern Terri-
tory and North Queensland.

Nest. — A hollow spout or tnink of a tree.

Eggi^. — Clutch, four- probably ; round oval in form ; texture of shell
comparatively fine ; sm-face glossy ; colour, white originally, generally
more or k ss stained. Dimensions in inches of a pair in the collection of
Mr. Dudley Le Souef : (i) 1-26 x 1-03, (2) 1-22 x 1-02.

Observations. — Gould regarded the Red-winged Parrots found in the
Northern Territoiy, as different from those of the east coast. The former
are smaller in all their measurements, except the bill, which is somewhat
larger, and the adult males are more richly coloured, wliile the red on
the wings is more of a crimson hue. However, touching the three adult
males, one adult female, and one yoimg male, procured by the Calvert

528 NESTS AVD EGGS OF AUSTRAL/AN BIRDS.

Expedition at the camp near the Fitzroy River, Mr. North, who critically
examined the bii'ds of the Expedition, pronoimces these Parrots similar
in colour and size to examples from Eastern Australia, except in having
the tail feathers sliglitly more yellowish-gi-een. Therefore I may be
justified, on geograpliical gi-ounds only, in keeping the birds separate.

Mr. Keartland gives a gi'aphic field note of some eggs taken : — " On
March 18th, Mr. Arch. Blyth pointed out a tree uito which he had
noticed one of these birds enter. As we approached the tree a bullock-
wlup was cracked several times, but the bird sat close until the limb was
struck, when she emerged from a hollow branch about forty feet high.
A native was sent up, but holes had to be cut along tlie horizontal limb
and down the inmk until the nest was located, about six feet from the
groiuid. The foiu- partly-incubated eggs it contained were simply
deposited on the decayed wood at the bottom of the hollow."

Breeding season, usually December to March.

493. — Aprosmictus cyanopygius, Vieillot. — (409)
KING LORY.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 17.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 4S6.
Frevious Description of Eggs. — North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 255
(iSSy).

Geographical Dintrihutinn. — Queensland, New South Wales, and
Victoria.

Nest. — Within a hollow limb or tnmk of a giant-tree (eucalypt), some-
times as far down as the base, in heavy forest coxmtry.

Eyg^. — Clut<'h, four to six ; roundish in shape ; texture of shell
coarse ; surface slightly glossy, but somewhat rough, being minutely
pitted and with here and tltere a limy nodule; colour, ptu'e white.
Dimensions in inches of a clutch: (1) TS x 1'08, (2) l*!27xl'll,
(3) 1-21 X 1-06.

Obscrvnfionft. — This splendid species, with showy scarlet head and
under surface, may well be called a " King " Parrot. It ranges through
the wooded tracts of Eastern Australia from uear Cape Yorl<* to Ca.i)e
Otway. It is a familiar bird in Gij)])sland, where its shrill, high-pitched
single call-note frequently resoimds through the forest depths.

Although the bix-d is fairly plentiful, the eggs are exceedingly rare,
for the rea,son that it usually builds in the highest of trees. I only know
examples of eggs in three collections, namely, the Maclcayan Maseum,
Sydney, thr National Museum, Melbnurnc, and in (lie private collection

*The tropical bird is smaller and richer in cnlourinij, especially in the
scarlet, which is of dazzling brightness.

A-£STS AND iiCGS OF AUSTRAL/ A A' BIRDS. 629

of Mr. Jas. Kershaw. The last-mculioucd arc those described above.
As I remarked at the time, the eggs 1 lirsl described fioiu the Queensland
Museum were rather small. I have siuee learut they were referable
to another Parrot, possibly the Red-winged. I am not the only one who
erred in this respect, for Gould, to put ib mildly as he could, " looked
with suspicion," on the aecoimt of the breeding of the King Parrot given
by Mr. Caley* iu the " LinncAU Transiictions." Gould's specimen must
have reference to that of some other bkd.

Of coui-se it is well known that the male bird of this splcucUd Parrot
does not attain its full and glorious garb luitil the tnird year.

Young ones, ou more than one occasion, have been taken from within
the butts of great hollow trees in the Otway Forest.

ine eggs in Mr. Kershaw's collection were taken at Childers, South
Gippsland, 5th October, 1895.

Sub-family — PlatycercinjE : Parrakeets.

494. — Platycercus elegans, Gmehn.--(415)
F. pennantii, Latham.

CRIMSON (PENNANT) PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vul. v., pi. 23.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 541.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould: Birds of Australia (1848),
alsa Handbook, vol. li., p. 45 (1865); North: Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 257, pi. 14, fig. 6 {1889).

Gtugraphical Distribution . — South Queensland, New South Wales,
'Victoria and South Australia.

Neat. — Within a hollow hmb or trunk of a tall tree, usually in thick
forest.

E(j(j!f. — Clutch, five to eight ; elliptical in shape ; texture of shell
comparatively fine; surface glossy; colour, pxure white, but sometimes
yellowish in tone from the dust of the nest. Dimensions in inches of a
full clutch: (1) 1-15 X -9, (2) 1-14 X -88, (3) M3 x -89, (4) 1-12 x -9,
(:j) M2 X -9, (6) Ml x -88, (7) 1-1 x -89 ; of three ex a clutch of eight by
fuU-plumaged parents: (1) l-18x'92, (2) M7 x -92, (3) M5 x -93.

Obsermtions. — The Pennant PaiTakect in full plumage is one of the
most glorious birds of the bush. When a flock is seen passing through

• Caley was sent to Australia by Sir Joseph Banks to collect plants , but any
birds or animals he collected he was permitted to retain. These— many of which
became types — he sold to the Linnean Society.

030

NksTS ANt> EGGS OF AVSTRALIAiX BIRDS.

the forest they describe as it were so mauy streaks of the richest Lriiiisou
coloiuing. Their beautiful dress is uot douued till the third year or
thereabouts. However, some of the birds breed before that stage.

The forest tracts of Soulh-easteru Austraha, including Kangaroo
Island, are the home of this bii-d. I have noticed tlie birds nesting m
the foot-hills of the Pyrenees, and afterwards in the Upper Wembee
district, where, in conjunction with Messrs. Brittlebauk, several nests
were found. One in particular was interesting, from the fact that one
of the birds (apparently the female) belonging to the nest had the mottled
greenish uress, and was not in full plumage. The nest was iu a stringy-
bark tree that gi'ew in a deep secluded gully. The nesting hole was ten
or twelve feet from the ground, in a barrel near the junction of a
projecting hmb. The eggs, seven, shghtly incubated, were within aims'
length of the entrance. Date, 8th November, 1890. Another nest
was found on the 10th containing eight eggs, the parents of which were
both in immature dress.

Apropos of Dr. Paul Levekiihn's work, " Another Bird's Egg iu the
Nest," the Messrs. Brittlebank took, on the 18th Octobei-, 1890, a clutch
of Pennant Panakeet's eggs, replacing in the nesting hole a clutch of
Rosella's. Unfortimately it was afterwards found that another bird
nester had discovered the nest and removed the eggs before the interesting
experiment was concluded.

Breeding months, usually October to December, but yoimg have been
taken as late as Februaiy.

495. — Platycercus elegans (sub-species) nigkescens, Ramsay.
CAMPBELL PARRAKEET.

Reference. — Ramsay : Tabular List Austii. Birds, p. 34.

Geographical Distribution. — North Queensland.

Ntst and Eygs. — Undescribed.

Observations. — On the outskirts of a dense sci-ub, feeding upon acacia
seeds, near our Cardwell camp. Northern Queensland (1885), we shot
several deep crimsoii-red Pairakeets, with blue cheeks and shoiUders like
the Crimson Parrakeet (Pennant) of (Jippslaiul, but evidently a variety,
being smaller, with feathers on tlie back anil neck almost black. Besides,
the bird jwssessed quite a dilTerent voice, which was the means of first
attracting our attention when we were at our tents.

In passing through Sydney, I brought this new viuuety of i'arrot
under the notice of Dr. E. P. Ramsay. His verdict was " I'latycercus
jif'iiiianfii." With tliis decision 1 felt hardly satisfied, and had a specimen
noticed in tiio "Victorian Naturalist" (188G), subsequently presenting
the skin to tlie National Museum, Melbourne, where it is now set up in
the Queensland division.

^JiSTS AND liiSGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 63 1

However, wliou Dr. Ramsay's own collector brought from the Cairns
scrubs precisely similar Parrakoets, a year or two afterwards, the Doctor
dill not apparently hesitate to describe them imder the uauie Flatyctrcus
pcHiuintii, variety nii/reactns.

This Parrakect is most probably the same variety observed by the
Queensland Scientific Expedition (1881)), near the summit of Belleuden-
Ker.

496. — Platyceecus ADELAiDiE, Gould. — (416)
ADELAIDE ROSELLA.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, iol., vol. v., pi. 22.

Rejtrence. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 543.

Frevioui Description of Eggs. — Campbell ; Victorian Naturalist (18S8).

Geograpliical Distnbutiun. — South Australia.

A'tst. — Within a hollow limb or trunk of a tree.

Egys. — ^Ulutch, five or more ; roimdish or roimd oval iu form ; textvue
of shell comparatively fine ; surface glossy ; coloui", piu'e white, sometimes
stained with the wood of the nest. Dimensions in inches of a proper
clutch: (1^ 1-14 X -95, (2) M2 x -94, (3) M2 x -92, (4j Ml x -92,
(u; 1-04 X -92.

Ohservations.—lLhe ii.delaide Rosella or Pheasant Parrakeet is a
beautiful species in radiant colouring, between the RoseDa and the
Crimson Pairakeet, which appears to be restricted to South Austraha,
including the interior. It was named adelaidensis, from the circum-
stance that Gould, in 1838, procured some of his first specimens in the
very streets of Adelaide. The South Australians have an equally good
vernacular name — Pheasant Parrot.

In the matter of wholly green or partially coloured youthful birds,
this species resembles P. eleyans (ptnnaittii).

In 1888, through the comtesy of iy.r. Geo. Beazley, 1 was enabled to
describe tne eggs of the Adelaide Rosella from the collection of the
Adelaide Museum, wliich eggs were collected by the late Mr. F. W.
Andrews.

Afterwards I received a full set of five eggs collected by Mr. W.
White, Reedbeds, taken from a hole in a large gum-tree growing on the
bank of a rocky creek. Flinders Range. Date, 20th September, 1894.

Some authorities believe the Adelaide Rosella to be a hybrid. Such
cannot be a fact, because Mr. White has had them breed and hatch
young in liis aviary.

632 NESTS ANV EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

497. — Platycercus flaveolus, Gould. — (418)
YELLOW FARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 25.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 544.

Previous Description of Eggs. — Campbell: Wombat, Oct., 1897 (read
b.'fore Roy. Sue, Victoria, 9th April, 1895).

Geographical Distribution. — New South Wales, Victoria, aud
South AustraUa..

Ne.-it. — Witliiu a hollow branch or bole of a tree, usually a red-gum
(Eucalyptus roatrata ), growing on a flat or bordering a stream.

Eijyf. — Chitch, foiu' to live ; round oval in shape ; texture of shell
line ; surface shghtly glossy ; colour, piu'e white. Dimensions in inches
of a proper clutch: (1) M6 x -93, (2) M6 x -92, (3) M2 x -93,
(4) MOx-92.

Observations. — As far as is yet known the Yellow Parrakeet, or
Swamp Lory of the trappers, has a somewhat hmited range, being
chiefly confined to the inland provinces of New South Wales, Victoria,
aud South Australia. The bird is numerous in some localities, notably
Riverina, where it appears to take the place of the famiUar Rosella
(P. eximius), and lias a call-note hke that bird, but its alann notes are
louder and harsher.

I have noticed the Yellow Pai-rakeet as far south us the Pyramid
Hill aud Echuca districts, Victoria. At the latter place, one dewy
morning in early spring, I came upon a flock of about thirty or forty
feeding upon the surface of a sand rise. Wliile placing myself under
a clump of silver wattles, all abloom, to make observations upon this
unusually large congregation of Parrots, a pair of vagrant dogs that had
been rabbiting on their own account close by crossed the rise, and dis-
persed my feathered friends. On another occasion I watched a pair
of these birds feeding on " Bathurst biu-rs, by a dead log. a few paces
from me. The male appeared to be the larger and brighter coloured
bird.

In the Moulametn district of Riverina, Mr. J. Gabriel and myself
found the Yellow Parrakeet numerous, especially in the limber
bordering streams, and not infrequently visiting the gardens of
selectors and other's.

The birds were then (September, 1894) pairing, or had paired, but
wo were unable to discover in the numerous red-gums on the flat, or
along the watercourses, the eggs, which were new to science. However,
Mr. W. White, with a relative, wiio happened t-o be out collecting
dui'ing the same month in the Flinders Range, South Australia, kindly
forwarded me a set of four eggs, which specimens are herein described.
They were taken on 20th September, 1894, from a hole under aai
elbow of a large red-gum ( Euciiliiptiix) growing in a grassy vale in the
Warrabra Forest, which is 200 odd miles north of Adelaide.

fi/ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 633

498. — Platvceucus i'laviventius, TLiiuniuck. — (^17)
GEEEN FAKKAKEET.

Figure.— Gon\<i : Birds o£ Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 24.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 545.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (184S) ,

also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 49 (1S65); North: Austn. Mus.

Cat., p. 258 (1889).

Geographical Distribution. — Tiismama aud principal islands in
Bass Strait.

Xest. — Within a hole in a tall tree (cucalypt).

Eyys. — Clutch, foiu- to six or eight ; elliptical in shape ; textiu'e of
shell fine ; sm-face glossy ; colour, piu-e white. Dimensions in inches of a
pair: (1) M7 x -88. (2) M6x-89.

Oh.-<ervatiun-i.- — The large Yellow-bellied or Green Pan'ot is pccuUar
to Tasmania and the larger islands in Bass Strait. Odd examples may
have been found on the mainland opposite, because, in the excursion
of the Field NaturaUsts' Club of Victoria, the Parrots were found on
Kent Group, not more than sixty miles from the nearest Victorian
coast. In all examples seen in the Strait we noticed none so highly
coloiu-ed as the figm-e shown in Gould's plate : possibly they had not
reached perfection, because, like the Ciinison (Pennant) Parrakeet,
the full adult plumage is the progress of seasons.

When these yoimg Parrakeets are first hatched, Gould remarks
that they are covered with long wliite down, and present an appearance
of a round ball of white cotton wool.

The eggs of the Green Parrakeet in my collection are from a set
of four taken by Mr. G. H. Hinsby, from a hollow gum, at a height
of only six feet from the ground, on the Hamilton Road, near Both-
well, Tasmania, November, 1876.

Breeding months, October to December or January.

499. — Platycercus pallidiceps. Vigors. — (419)
PALE-HEADED PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 26.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 547.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.
Wales, vol. vii., p. 53 (i<S82) ; Campbell : Southern Science
Record (1883).

Geographical Distribution. — Queensland and New South Wales.

634 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Nest. — Withiu a liolu iu a tree.

Eggs. — Clutch, four to live ; uearly round or round oval in shape ;
textiu-c of shell somewhat fine ; surface glossy ; colour, pui-e wlute.
Dixueusious in inches of a proper clutch : (1) 1-Ui x 88, (2^ 1-04 x -89,
(3) 1-02 X -87, (4) 1-02 x -84.

Ohservatiuns. — -The beautiful Pale-headed Parrakeet, or Moretou
Bay Rosella, is not so highly coloured and variegated as its more
southern representative, P. eximius, yet when seen in the open, with
its light-blue plumnge and delicate yellow head, it is a most capti-
vating creature. It lives in conlinement remarkably well. Besides
Queensland, the northern part of New South Wales is included in
its habitat.

The eggs of the Pale-headed Parrakeet in my collection bear the
data, Coomooboolaroo (Queensland), &c., where I had the pleasure of
observing the birds in a state of nature, and procuring skins.

Usual breeding season, September to December, but at Coomoo-
boolaroo the birds have been observed laying in March and July, but
generally in October.

500. — Platycercus amathusia, Bonapai-te.— (420)
P. cyaiwgenys, Gould.

BLUE-CHEEKED PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Guuld : Birds of Auslralia, fol., supp., pi. 63.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 548.

Geographical Distribution. — Northern Territory and North Queens-
land.

Nest and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Observations. — This rare Parrakeet is closely alhed to the Pale-
headed Parrakeet (P. pa/h'ceps), but differs, as Gould has pointed out,
in the greener tone of the colouring of its body and in the rich blue
of the checks, hence the name " Blue-cheeked." It is a northern bird,
and the original specimen was procured at Cape York by Macgillivray,
October, 1848.

501. — Platycercus uuowni, Temminck. — (421)
P. venustus, Kuhl.

SMUTTY PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of .Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 31.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 549.

di'iit/rrijiliir/il Dixtribvlian. — North-west Australia .ind Nui-tiiern
Territory.

^ESTS AND £CCS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 635

Nest and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Ohxervufiuni;. — This exceedingly fine Parrakect was named after
the distinguished botanist, Robert Brown, but the local name, Smutty
Parrot, is at once more characteristic, ou accoimt of some of the bird's
feathers being slightly fringed with black. I have handled specimens
from the Port Darwin district, where it is reported to be a plentiful
sjjccies.

502. — Platycekcus ekythropeplls, Salvadori.

RED-BACKED ROSELLA.

Figure. — Proc. Zool. Soc. (1891), pi. 12.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 550.

Geographical DUtributinn. — Unknown.

Nest and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Observations. — ^According to Count Salvadori, this species is inter-
mediate between P. elegans and P. eximiui;. The type was formerly
in Gotild's collection, but is now in the Bntish Museum. Unfor-
tunately the original label was lost, therefore it is not known where
the specimen was obtained. Most probably the bird is a hybrid
between the two species mentioned by the Count, as it possesses the
blue of the Crimson Pairakeet on the lower part of the cheek, and
the white of the Rosella on the upper, besides other combinations
observable.

503. — Platycercus eximius, Shaw. — (422)
ROSELLA.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 27.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 551.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1S48) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 56 (1865) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 25S (rSSg).

Geographical Distribution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania.

Nest. — Within a hollow spouted limb or trunk of a tree, occasion-
ally not far from the ground, in forest country.

6:;6 NESTS AND EGGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIKDS.

Egyii. — Clutch, six to iiiuu ; \i\ry i'roin rouud oval to o\al in
shape ; textui'e of shell fiue ; occasionally somewhat coai'sc ; surface
slightly glossy ; coloui' piu-e white. Dimensions in inches of a proper
clutch: (1) 1-1 X -82, (2) 1-07 X -79, (3) 1-0 x -82, (4) -98 x -83,
(5) -96 X -8; of a larger pair: (1) 1-11 x -94, (2) 1-09 x -93.

Obsiri'dliuus. — If the familiar Rosella, or Kosc-hill I'arndceet, were
not so common, it would, on account of the richness and variety of the
coloiuing of its plumage, no doubt be deemed one of the most elegant
and beautiful of Australian PaiTots. As a cage favourite it is merely
called a " Pretty Joey," possibly because, like Joseph of old, it wears
a coat of many colours. It possesses a pleasing whistling call note
and pleasant chattering tones.

The Eose-liill Paxrakeet derived its name from being iirst found at
Rose Hill, near Sydney. Afterwards the word no doubt became cor-
rupted into Rosella.

The Rosella Parrakeet is an abundant species throughout .South-
eastern Australia, including Tasmania, where it is a larger bird.* I have
found from sets I have taken that the forest birds of Gippsland lay
larger eggs than do those in the more open country of Western
Victoria. What can be the reason?

Rosellas will continue to complete their clutches, even if the first
eggs laid are removed, a fact I proved at Cardinia Creek, Berwick, where
I took two eggs 11th October, 1880, from a nest, and again two eggs
from the same hole on the 13th. The late Mr. F. H. Reed, Tasmania,
also found that Rosellas continue laying, notwithstanding the eggs be
removed daily.

Of all the curious places to find a Rosella's eggs I think a
Babbler's fPoiiuifor/iiinix) nest takes the palm. On the Lower WeiTi-
bee, 6th November, 1894, Mr. Charles French, junr., flushed a Rosella
from one of these large covered stick-made nests, and took six eggs of
the Parrot therefrom.

Mr. A. W. Milligan made the inteiesting observation that young
Rosellas do not all leave the nest at the same time, but leave singly,
perhaps a period of three weeks elapsing between first and last
depaii/Ure. As they leave they join a flock of old birds, by which they
are cared for and fed.

Rosellas live to a good age ; 1 have had a female in my aviary for
the last seventeen years, how old she was when I obtained her I know
not. An acquaintance had a single bird for twenty-three years, the
bird's bill and toe-nails had frequently to be pared.

Mr. George SmelUe, Williamstown, had a pair of Rosellas in cap-
tivity, and during the season of 1895 the hen laid six eggs, but,
although the eggs were in a dark secluded corner, they were not
iiatched. Tlie male bird used to regularly feed his mate on her nest.

Tlic following is an incident of which the truthfulness is vouched.
On Piccaninny Creek, near Kow Swamp, Victoria, a farmer friend
observed a Rosella fluttering in a tree as if overpowered in some

' The white patches on the cheeks are also conspicuously larger than those
on the mainland bird.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTTiALIAN BINDS. 637

manner. Below was a black snake, glinting in the sunlight, looking
straight at the bird. The Parrot came nearer and nearer, and finally
fell paralysed or dead beside the snake. The farmer then, waiting
till the snake had not eaten, but simply got "outside" of the bird
killed the snake, took the bird out, and examined it.

The following is another snake and Parrot story. Mr. Robert
H. Adams, Goondi\vindi, Queensland, writes : " In ' The Australasian '
of the 30th July, 1898, you nan-ated an instance of a Panot being
fascinated by a snake. I heard of an almost similar case.
Mr. Kimmorlev, Winton station, and a friend were standing near the
house, when their attention was drawn to the cries of a Pan-ot circhng
round the top of a gum-tree. On looking more carefully they dis-
covered the head and neck of a snake projecting from the boughs, and
after a while the Pan-ot fluttered right down to the snake's mouth.
Mr. Kimmorley got a gim and shot the snake."

One nest found at Myniiong, Victoria, was in a hollow spout, so
low that standing on the gi'ound I could see the eggs resting down in
the semi-darkness. Clutch, five. 11th November, 1890.

Breeding months in general October to December, or when the
grass seeds ripen. Numerous young ones may be seen hawked about
the streets of Melbourne about tlic end of Novmber and during
December.

To persons selecting fledgeling Rosollas from the nest, or purchasers
of young " Joeys " from street hawkers, it may be useful to know
that the male is yellowish on the flanks, while the same parts on the
female are more greenish in colour.

504. — Platycercus splendidtts, Gould. — (423)
YELLOW-MANTLED PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould ; Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 28.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 553.

Geographical Dixtrihution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
and interior of South Australia (probably).

Neat and Egg.^. — Undescribed.

Ohservationa. — This really " Splendid " Parrakeet was one of the
first novelties procured by Gilbert after the Expedition (Leichhardt's)
left Brisbane, 1844. It resembles the common Rosella, but amongst
other differences has the feathers of the back broadly marked with
rich gamboge instead of greenish-yellow, hence the better vernacular
name. Yellow-mantled Rosella or Parrakeet.

Unless it be a hybrid, I fear Dr. Ramsay's P. maxteraianvs will
have to be placed as a variety of the sphmdid Yellow-mantled
Parrakeet

6^8 NESTS .4.YZ? EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

505. — Platycercus ignitus, Lcadbeatcr.
FIERY PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 30.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. .\x., p. 553.

Geof/r/ipliiriil Disfribnliiiii . — South Qtiocnslnnd, New South Wales,
Victoria, and South Australia ( !)■

Obnervation.'i. — Although Gould at fir.st figured the Fiery Parrakcct
in its tiTily flaming colouring, ho aftci-wards believed the bii'd to be
an anomalous or a diseased variety of the common Rosalia (P. eximiua).
But Coiuit Salvadori has restored it to a sfjecies. I beUeve Gould's
second judgment is ncaxer the truth, and that it is not a good species.

The original specimen, which Mr. John Leadbeater described in
1837. was stated to have been prociu'ed in the district of Brisbane.

Dr. Cliarles Ryan has in his collection a similar beautiful bird,
which was shot in Victoria. There is in the Geelong Museum a speci-
men, as far as I can recollect, resembling the ordinary Rosella, but
with upper tail coverts red (scarlet) instead of green, thus making a
kind of connecting link between the Rosella and the so-called Ficrj'
Parrakeet. Again, in Gould's figure of the latter bird there arc white
markings on the wings, which appear on those parts in immature
Rosellas.

Mr. A. Coles, the well-known taxidermist, states three or four
examples of Fiery Parrakeets, including both sexes, have passed
through his hands, and he believes the species to be distinct.

I was once in\'ited to inspect a very beautiful Pan'ot, alive, at a
gentleman's residence. Toorak. Its general plumage was a rich yellow,
passing into white at the primaries and the extremity of the tail,
while the crown of the head, throat and abdomen dowm to the imdcr
tail coverts were scarlet. The cheeks were white, which proved the
bird was a lusus nafurce of the Rosella species.

506. — Platycercus icterotis, Tcmminek. — (424)
YELLOW-CHEEKED PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi, ag.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 554.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould: Birds of Australia (1848),

also Handbook, vol. ii., p. ^g (1.S65) ; Le .Soupf : This, p. 45S

(1900).

Geographical Dixtrihufinn. — South (?) and West Australia.

]Ve.^t. — Within a hollow .spouted limb or trank of a tall tree in
thick forest.

E!/f/.<<. — Clutch, .six to seven; colour, white. Dimensions: -92 x 8
inches (Gould).

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 635

Ohservnfions. — Tho Yellow-clipfkod Parrakcct of Western Australia
takes its name from the yellow sides of the face, which are in lovely
contrast to the head and under siuface of soft scarlet and a dark
niottled-grccn back. However, during the first year or two the youth-
ful hirtis are nearly a unifonn gi-een. like the Pennant and others of the
genus.

I was often charmed with the lovely figmes of the Yellow-cheeked
Parrakect, locally called the Rosella, about my hut door at KaiTidale,
or perched upon the garden fence. Fearless of Iniman beings, a pair
was breeding in a hollow tree near the house, but to me the eggs were
so many sour grapes, for the reason that I could not climb the stiff
tree. The birds are particularlv partial to the fnut of the Cape
gooseberry, and well they may be, for I know of no preserve more
delightful.

Breeding months October to December. The Western Rosella
makes a good cage bird. One bird was apparently happy during twenty-
one years of confinement.

507. — Pl.vtvcercl's x.\nthogenys, Salvadori.
RED-MANTLED PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. x,\., pi. 16.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 555.

Geographical Distribution . — Unknown.

Nest and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Ohservations. — ^Tlie Red-mantled PaiTakeet is another novelty
which Count Salvadori has unearthed from Gould's original collection.
However, its precise habitat is unknown. It is allied to the Yellow-
checked Parrakeet of Western Australia, but wears a red mantle instead
of green.

508. — PoRPHYRocEPH.\LUs spuRius, Kuhl.^425)
p. pileatus, Vigors.

RED-CAPPED PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 32.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 556.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs.—Gould : Birds of Australia (184S) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 60 (1865).

Geographical Distrihiition. — West and North-west Australia. Gould
also .states Northern Tcmtory.

640 NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTRALTAN BIRDS.

Neat. — Usually within a dead hollow branch of a largo eucalypt.

Egga. — Clutch, seven to nine; colour, milk-whito. Dimensions:
1-12 x- 8 7 inches (Gould).

Olixervdtidiix. — Tlie so-called " King Pari'ot " of Western Australia,
or, correctly speaking, the Red-capped Parrakcet — a name derived
from its deep-maroon ci'own — is a gorgeous bird. I enjoyed many
opportunities of observing them in the karri and jaiTah forests, wlicrc
they loved to feed upon the kernel of the native pear ( Xyhnnchnn),
when the fniit opens under the summer smi.

It was with much satisfaction that I brought home and let loose
in my aviary one of these handsome birds. It was thriving splendidly,
till one dav, to my regret, a member of my household accidentally let
the bird escape.

Breeding months October to December.

509. — Barnardius BAENARni, Latham. — (412)
MALLEE PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 21,

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 55S.

Previous Deuriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern .Science Record
(1885); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 256, pi. 14, fig. 7 (i88g).

Geographical Distrihutinn. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, and South Australia.

Nest. — Within a hollow bole or branch of a tree in open forest
country ; also reported to breed in the cliffs of the Lower MuiTay
River.

Egijf:. — Clutch, four to five ; elliptical or round oval in shape ;
texture of shell inclined to be coarse in .some examjiles. finer in others;
surface slightly glossy ; colour, white. Dimensions in inches of a set
of three: (1) 1-24 x -97, (2) 1-22 x -94, (3) 1-2 x -99; of odd examples:
(1) 1-2 X -92, (2) MSxl-O, (3) M2 x -93, (4) M x -93.

Ohxrrvalions. — Tliis splendid Parrot loves the inland portions
chiefly of New Soutli Wales, Victoria, and Soulh Australia, and it is
u.sually associated in pairs or small families in such places as the
Wimmera district or Rivcrina. This species of " Collared " Parrakeets
(Bai-nard) is also known as the Malleo Pan-ot. Besides the yellow
collar, it wears nearly all the other colours of the rainbow, ;ind is indeed
a lovely Parrot.

/VESTS AND ECGS OF AVSTRAUAN BIRDS. 641

The Mallee Parrokcet possesses a lighter or higher pitched voice
than the Plntijrfrri, and when the bird is on the wing its notes,
though somewhat jerky, are musical, sounchng Hke " whit-whit-whit."
When Emu egging in the Eiverina, June, 1895, I noticed this hajid-
some Parrakeet usually in pairs. The male always appeared the larger
and more brightly coloured bird.

Gould did not succeed in taking the eggs of the Mallee, or Barnard
Parrakeet, although it was breeding in the large trees of all the
difTerent parts of the country he visited. Indeed these eggs wore
rare in collections for some time. Tlie one originally described by me
in 1885 was procured through the agency of my brother, then at
Nhill, in the Wimmera district.

The late Mr. T. A. Forbes-Leith records : — " I have this beautiful
PaiTakcet well impressed on my memory, as on following one I got
bu.shed for .some time, with the thermometer about 160 degrees in
the sun, and no water in the district. I brought the PaiTot home,
although at one time, owing to the groat heat and my intense thirst,
I thought I should have perished."

On the authority of the late Captain F. C. Hansen, I have men-
tioned the Murray cliffs as a breeding place. He did not take eggs,
but when passing in the steamer " Maggie " noticed these Parrakeets
nesting there, also the Rock Pcbbler (PolyfeJix melnnura) and the
" Blue Bonnet " ( Psrplidtiix -aii/Iiorrhinix).

Breeding months from the middle of September to the end of the
year, but in extraordinai-y seasons (notably 1899) eggs and young have
been noticed in Julv.

510. — BARNARnius SEMTTORQUATUS. Quoy and Gaimard. — (413)
YELLOW-COLI.ARED PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 19.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 559.

Previous Descriftiotis of Eggs. — *Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 42 (1865).

Gencjraphiral Dixfrihution. — West Australia.

Nest. — A hole or hollow in a tall tree (eucalypt) in thick forest.

Bgcju. — Clutch, seven to nine (Gould) ; round oval in shape ;
texture of shell comparatively fine; surface slightly glossy; colour,
pure white. Dimensions of a set of three : (1) 1-29 x 1-0, (2) 1-22 x 1-0.
(3) 1-21 X 10. (Keartland collection.)

Ohnervations. — This is the largest species of the handsome ring-
necked PaiTakeets, and is a Western Australian bird, where it is
plentiful. I do not think it ventures into the tropics. It has been

*No dimensions eiven.

41

64-

^'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

called from time immemorial the " Twenty-eight " Parrakeet, for during
its undulatory flight through the woods it often calls " twenty-eight,
twenty-eight, twenty-eight. " Few sights are more captivating than a
family of these magnificent PaiTakeets perched upon a naked bough.
Breeding season, end of September and beginning of October to
December.

511. — Barnardius zonarius, Shaw. — (414)
YELLOW-BANDED PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 20.

Kefcrenfe. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 560.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
(18S8), also Proc. Rov. See, Victoria, vol. iii., p. 4 (iRc)o).

Gcngrnphirnl Distributinn. — Victoria, South, West, and North-west
Australia and the Interior, including the Gulf of Carpentaria district.

Nest. — Within a hole or hollow branch of a tree, the eggs, as in
the case of the majoiity of the tribe, being deposited on the di-y,
decayed dust at the bottom.

T^qgs. — Clutch, five or more ; roundish in shape ; texture of shell
fine ; surface glossy, with occa,Rionally tiny limy nodules ; colour, pure
white. Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch from Westcm Aus-
tralia: (1) 1-27 x-%, (2) 1-2 X -94, (3) 1-2 x -9.3, (4) M9x-9,
(5) 1-18 X •9.5; of odd examples from Central Australia: (1) l-1.5x-96,
(2) 1-1 x-91.

Ohxervnfions. — Excepting the eastern and northern parts of Aus-
tralia, the Yellow-banded, or loc.allv-callcd Port Lincoln, Parrakeet, is
found over a great part of Australia, especially the dry, desolate,
inland portion from Central to West, and, like its cou.sin. the Yellow-
collared, wears a black head, but may be distinguished by its
gamboge-yellow waistcoat, hence the name "banded."

On Boxing Dav, 1889, when shooting with Mr. P. H. Cowan, on
the Grecnough River. Champion Bay district. West Australia, we
heard the peculiar chattering voices of Panots in light metallic tones.
We soon shot specimens, which resembled the Yellow-banded, yet by
their lighter colour and smaller size, seemed different. However, on
sending an example to the British Museum, Count Salvadori classed
it with B. znnnrinft.

To the goodness of Miss N. Loque, of Ellendale, Champion Bay,
T am indebted for sending me a full set nf five eggs, which were taken
from a hollow eucalyptus bordering her home river — the Grecnough.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 643

512. — Barnardivs occidentalis. North.
NORTH PARRAKEET.

Reference. — Records Austn. Mus., vol. ii., p. 83 (1893).
Ceographirnl Dhtrihiitinn. — West and North-west Australia.

Ohaervations. — Mr. North states : "In tlic disposition of its markings
B. occidentnlM resembles B. zonarius, bub it differs from that species in
having light-blue instead of dark-blue cheeks; in the gi-eater extent of
the conspicuous lemon-vellow of the lower portion of the breast and the
whole of the abdomen, nnrl which erfeinh as for r/s the rent, instead of
the deep gamboge-yeliow of the centre of the abdomen only ; in the
verditer-green of the chest, back, wings, scapulars and interscapular
region, instead of dark gi-een, and in the absence of the naiTow black
band immediately below the collar."

This description seems to answer to those of the birds I shot near
Champion Bay (referred to in the preceding species), one of which
I forwarded to the British Museum, with the hint that it was possibly
new, but which Count Salvadori made synonymous with B. zonnrins.
I also received similar Parrots from Mr. T. Carter, Point Cloates.

If I recollect rightly, B. nccidenfalis is the first bird that has been
named by Mr. North, and if he can establish his new species, I venture
to think ornithologists will agree with me in placing it on the vernacular
list as the North Pairakeet. In the event of the new species being
undoubtedlv established, then the eggs which I Inve described from the
Champion Bay district as B. :ritieiriii'^ arc referable to B. orrideufnlis.

513. PSEPHOTUS ZANTHOREHOT-S. Gould. (427)

YELLOW-VENTED PARRAKEET.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. x.x.. p. 563.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Lucas : Victorian Naturalist (1884) ;
Campbell : Southern Science Record (1885) ; North : Proc.
Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. ii., 2nd ser., p. 986 (1887).

Geograjjhicnl Dixtrihution. — New South Wales, Victoria, South and

West Australia.

Nest. — Within a hole or hollow, usually in a box-tree (Eucalyptus)
growing in belts of timber on the plains ; also reported to breed in
the cliffs of the Lower Murray River.

Eggs. — Clutch, five to seven usually, ten maxiiiuuii ; roiuid in shape ;
texture of shell fine ; sttrface glossy ; colour, piu'e wliite. Dimensions in
inches of a clutch : (1) LO x -84, (2) -94 x -84, (3) -94 x -8, (4) -92 x -84.
(5) -92 x -82.

644 IVESTS AXD EGGS OF AV ST KALI AN BIRDS.

Observofions. — The Yellow-vented Parrakoet, or the " Blue
Bonnet " of the bird-catchers, is chiefly found in the interior portions
of New South Wales and Victoria, notably on the plains of the Murray
and Riverina, where it retires to the belts of timber to breed. It is
also found in South and Western Australia. It is a graceful
bird, about 12 inches or 13 inches in length ; general colour olive-brown,
relieved with a face of ultramarine blue, and a crimson patch down the
abdomen, the rest of tlic imder surface being yellowish. When flying
through tlie belts of timber in pairs or small flocks, their voices are
harsh, and grate upon one's ears.

I first received eggs from Mr. G. H. Morton, Benjcroop, 1883, and
the following season I myself found the .species nesting in the belts of
timber near Pyramid Hill, where, on the 8th October, seven young
ones about three or four weeks old were taken from a nest.

Apparently these Parrakeets arc not always easily flushed from
their nests. Mr. Morton tells me he has taken eggs from under the
sitting birds.

The set of seven eggs, collected by Mr. J. Hill, Kewell, Victoria,
taken on the 15th September, 1887, and described by Mr. North,
verifies the descriptions of the eggs of this species previously published
by Dr. T. P. Lucas and myself, although we all mistook the bird for the
Red-vented instead of the Yellow-vented Parrakeet.

Bird-trappers say there are two races of " Blue Bonnets " which
sometimes breed in the same locality. Perhaps the other bird is
referable to the siicceeding variety, the Red-vented Pan-akect
(P. hcemafnrrhnus).

Breeding months, end of August or beginning of September to
December.

On the habits of birds coming to water, Mr. H. W. Ford no doubt
refers to the Yellow-vented Pan-akeet when he writes : — " There is a
small Parrakeet, of a smoky-grey, with a pink spot on the breast, that
only goes to water after daik and before daylight. When camped, we
often heard them going over us both evening and morning. This
habit is often fatal to the birds, or some of them, when wire fences are
near the water. I have got the birds with head cut right off against
the wires. It is a peculiar habit, always going to water in the night,
and, like the antics of the Quamons (Cockatoo Parrots) and Shell
Parrakeets, is to escape their enemies, I suppose. For near water in
drought time all sorts of Hawks, cats, iguanas, and other caniivora
loiter, as an easy place to get food.

514. PSEPHOTUS HiEMATORRHOrs, Gould. (426)

RED-VENTED PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of .•Vustralia, £ol., vol. v., pi. 33.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 561.

Gengraphirol Di.<<frihiitinn. — South Queensland and New South
Wales.

NESTS AND EOGS Of Ai'Sr/<:AL/AN BIRDS. (jj -

Ne&t. — A hole or hollow iu a. tree.

Eijtja. — Clutch, probably live to seveu, and similar to those of the
Yellow-vented PaiTakeet {P. zaiitliurrhuunj.

Observatiuiu. — Tliis truly beautiful Parrakeet, although plainly
tigiu-ed by Gould, with its ciinison-coloiu-ed under tail coverts, has been
persistently confounded with the Yellow-vented species or variety, which
is the common bii'd, in the southern parts at all events, while the Red-
vented bird appeal's to be restricted to the northern portion of New-
South Wales and Southern Queensland. No doubt the naciual economy
of both birds is very similar.

Gould obtained his specuuens of the Red-vented Parrakeet on the
Lower Namoi River, Christmas, 1839. He failed, however, to glean
any infonnation respecting its nidiiication, particulars of which are still
wanting.

515. — PsEPHOTUS puLCHEREiMus, Gould. — (429)
BEAUTIFUL PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 34.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 564.

Previou, Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
{1885); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 261 (1889).

Geographical Ditribution. — Queensland and New South Wales.

Seat. — Usually a hole drilled into an ants (Ti-rmitesJ hillock, but
occasionally a hole of a tree, in open forest country. (See illustration.)

Eyys. — Clutch, four to live ; round oval in shape ; textiu-e of shell
fine ; suiface shghtly glossy ; colour, pure white. Dimensions iu inches
of a proper clutch : (1) -84 x -7, (2) -84 x -67, (3) -81 x -69,
(4) •79x-68; of odd examples; (1) -94 x -76, (2) -85 x "69.

Observations. — One is apt to become a httle effusive when des-
cribing the glorious colours of Parrots. Gould says, " Tlie graceful
form of this Parrakeet, combined with the extreme brilliancy of its
plumage, renders it one of the most lovely of the Psittacidce yet
discovered ; and in whatever light we regard it, whether as a beautiful
ornament to oiu' cabinets or a desirable addition to our aviaries, it is
still an object of no ordinary interest."

It has a somewhat limited range, being confined to the interior
portions of Queensland and adjacent parts in New South Wales.

The eggs and the fii'st information of the interesting fact that the
birds lay in ant-hillocks, I received from the late Mr. George
Barnard, Coomooboolaroo (Queensland), where the birds breed.
Unfortunately, during my visit to that part of the country, a drought

046

NESTS AND EGGS Of AUSTRALIAN HIRDS.

existed, and consequently the birds were not laying. However, on
a trip subsequently, Mr. D. Le Souef was more successful, and was
enabled to bring away an excellent photograph of an ant-hill, also
one showing the position of the eggs in the mound.

Dr. Carl Lumholtz observed that the nests were several miles apart,
and that those examined in September contained eggs partly incu-
bated. He proceeds to state, " There is an in-egular entrance, about
two inches in diameter and about a foot above the ground. In the
interior the Parrot makes an opening about a foot high and two or
three feet in diameter. None of the building material is carried away,
but all the cells and canals are trampled down, so that there remains
simply a wall, one or two inches thick, around the whole nest. Here
the female lays five white eggs."

Breeding months September to December.

516. — PsEPHOTUS CHRYSOPTERYGius, Gould. (428)

GOLDEN-SHOULDERED PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., supp., pi. 64.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 565.

Geoyrii [ill leal Di^tributuin. — North-west Australia, Northern Ten-i-
tory, and North Queensland.

Nest and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Observations.- — Gould wrote concerning the glorious Golden-
shouldered Parrakeet: — " One of the greatest pleasures enjoyed by tiie
late celebrated botanist, Robert Brown, during the last thirty years
of his life, was now and then to show me a drawing of a Panakeet,
made by one of the brothers Bauer, from a specimen procured some-
where on the north coast of Australia, but of which no specimen was
preserved at the time, and none had been sent to England until
several were brought home by Mr. Elsey, a year or two prior to
Mr. Brown's death. On comparing these with the drawing made at
least forty years before, no doubt remained in my mind as to its
having been made from an example of this species."

Tliis most beautiful Parrakeet remained in oblivion for exactly
another forty years (Mr. Elsey having obtained his skins in the Gulf
of Carpentaria district during Gregory's explorations, 14th September,
1856), until Mr. Hariy Bamard secured specimens at Pine Creek,
Port Darwin district, for .some Melbourne collectors. I bad the
pleasure of examining the rare specimens.

Tiie following year (10th M.ircli, 1897) the Zoological Society of
London purchased a pair of live Golden-sliouldercd P.iriakeets in
England. By a coincidence, the end of the same year anotiier bird
was bought in a dealer's shop, Sydney, for the Trustees of the Aus-
tralian Museum. No doubt, in both instances, these live birds came
originally from Port Darwin.

ANT HILLOCK, SHOWING NEST OF THE BEAUTIFUL
PARRAKEET,
From a Ptiotu by D. Le SouH;.

^ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. (j.j

517. I'SEPHOTUS DISSIMILIS, Collott.

CHESTNUT-CROWNED PARRAKEET.

Rejcrcncc. — Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 356 (1S9S).

Gtographicul Distribution. — Northoiu Territory.

Nest and Eyys. — Undescribed.

Observations. — Dr. Dahl first obtained this Parrakeet in 1895, iu
the Northom Temtory, where he met it here and there in small flocks,
particularly between Pine Creek and Catherine River, but it did not
appear common, and was only obsei-ved during the dry season.
Professor R. Collett, who described the bird, sta.tes that it comes
nearest to the Golden-shouldered PaiTakeet (P. chrysopterygmsj, but
lacks the yellow band across the forehead, has a chestnut crown, the
lower parts verditer-blue (in the male), and the under tail coverts
orange.

518. — PsEPHoTUS MULTICOLOR, Temminck. — (430)
MANY-COLOURED PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 35.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 566.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
(1888) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 261 (1889).

(reoyraphica/ Distribution. — New South Wales, Victoria, and South,
West and Norih-west Austraha.

Nest.- — Within a hole or hollow trunk of a tree.

Eyys. — Clutch, foiu' to six ; round in form ; texture of shell
fine ; surface glossy ; colour, pure wliite. Dimensions in inches :
(1) -gx-TG, (2) •9x-72, (3) -89 x -76, (4) -88 x -75, (5) -86 x -76,
(6) -86 X -75.

Observations. — The Many-coloured Parrakeet, especially the male,
is well named, and is fomid in the open forest country of the interior
portions of Southern Australia, where in parts it is stated to be
plentiful. It was noticed by the Horn Expedition near all water-holes
in Central Australia, and by the Calvert Expedition between Cue and
Lake Augusta, West Australia, while Mr. T. Carter found the species at
the North-west Cape. I have noticed a few pairs in the Wimmera
district of Victoria, where they breed. However, the eggs in my col-
lection are from Yorke Peninsula, South Australia, where they were
collected by Mr, W. Wliite from a nest in a hollow mallee limb. One
of the parents was captured on the nest.

648 NESTS AXD EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Breeding months August, September and October, and probably
later. As soon as the j'oung are feathered the sexes can be
distinguished — the male by his yellow shoulders, the female by her
dull-red.

519. PSEPHOTUS H^MATONOTUS, Gould. (431)

RED-BACKED PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 36.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 567.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 70 (1865) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 262 (1889).

Geographical Distribution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria and South Australia.

Nest. — Within a hole or hollow trunk of a tree, in open forest.

Et/gs. — Clutch, six to eight; roundish in shape; texture of shell
fine ; surface glossy ; coloiu', pure white, occasionally stained or soiled
with the wood dust of the nest. Dimensions in inches of selected
pairs: A(l) -95 x -79, (2) •94x-7-7; B(l) -99 x -73, (2) -92 x -72.

Observafioiin. — The familiar Red-backed Parrakeet is probably the
most common of the graceful genus Pisi'phutus, and is found in tlie
inland or interior tracts of Eastern Australia, where at some seasons,
especially during winter, they congregate in flocks of from 150 to 200
birds, making a harvest for bird catchers. On account of its
spending most of its time on the gi-ound, it is often called the " grass "
Parrot. It makes a good cage bird, its musical whistling notes, as
Gould remarks, almost approach a song.

Mr. John Ramsay has taken the eggs of this species as early as
2nd September (1868), at Cardington, on the Bell River.

An incomplete set of four eggs I took from a small dead tree near
Pyramid Hill, Victoria, 7th October, 1887. On the same date I saw
anotlier nest with three yoimg in down, proving these birds breed early
for Parrots. The eggs are common in collections.

The female of this graceful Parrakeet appears solely to perform
the task of incubation. I have watched her mate feeding her in or
near the nesting hole. He performs the operation somewhat after the
manner of a common Pigeon feeding its young, by connecting beaks
and discharging at intervals the contents of its crop with spasmodic
jerks, while the female keeps up a continual hissing noise.

Breeding months, end of August or September to December.

NESTS AND EGGS OP AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. fi^y

520.— Neophema BouEKEi, Gould (Mitchell). — (438)
BOURKE GRASS PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Clould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 43.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 570.
Freviotii Dtscriplions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(18S3) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 264 (1SS9).

Geographical Distribution. — New South Wales, Victoria, and South
Australia.

Nest. — Within a hole or hollow in a tree.

Egt/s. — Clutch, four, in some instances probably five ; inclined to
oval in shape ; texture of shell fine; surface glossy; colour, pure white.
Dimensions in inches about '9 x •?.

Observations. — The Bovu-ke Parrakeet is a somewhat rare interior
species, which I have never seen myself in the open. Of birds kept
in captivity it has been ascertained that the male bird assists in the
task of incubation, and in all probability this rule applies to the other
members of this beautiful genus.

With the original description of an egg, fiu'nishcd in the
" Catalogue " of the Australian Museum, it is stated that the late
Mr. K. H. Bennett took a set of these rare Parrakeets' eggs on the
20th August, 1884, in the interior of New South Wales.

Breeding season includes August and probably the three or four
following months.

521. — Neophema venusta, Temmiuck. — (432)
Eiipliema chriisnstuma, Gould.

BLUE-WINGED GRASS PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 37.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 570.

Previou! Descriptions of Eggs. — *Gould : Birds of Australia (1S48) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 72 (1865) ; Campbell : Southern
Science Record (1S83) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 262
(18S9); Hall: Victorian Naturalist (iSqS).

Geographical Dixtrihiition. — New South Wales, Victoria, South
Australia, Tasmania, King Island, and probably other islands in Bass
Strait.

Nest. — Within a small hole in a tree or in a hollow log or stump.
* No dimensions given.

650

A'ESrS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

E(j(js. — Clutch, iivt; Lo seven ; rouudish uval 111 shape ; texture of
sliell somewhat fine; surface glossy; colour, pure white. Dimensions
in inches of selected examples; (1) -91 x 73, (2) -9 x 74, (3) -89 x -72,
(4) -86 x -7.

Obse.rvatiuiis. — We arc now dealing with a delightful genus, the
species of wluch, for grace, elegance, and delicate eoluuruig, may be
considered the most beautiful of little Panots.

The species under notice is a dweller of the thinly-timbered localities
where much grass grows, in the south-eastern corner of Austi-alia,
including Tasmania and some of the islands in Bass Strait, not;ibly
Flinders. Gould says it is merely a summer visitant to Tasmania.
Mr. Robert Hall states it has been observed to arrive in pai-ts of
southern Victoria about the niiddle of September, departing again
(presumably north) during March or Apiil.

In the "Victorian Naturalist' (1898) there appears a most valu-
able contribution to the life liistoi-y of the Blue-winged Grass PaiTakeet,
by Mr. Hall, from the careful observations of his correspondent,
Mr. Graham, who states : — " This Parrakeet is very regular in timing
its visit, from 14th to 21st September, Its hrst concern upon arrival is
to find a suitable stump for nesting, Uic kind preferred being that about
one foot in diameter ;md ten to twenty-two feet high, pcrpeuchcular,
and two feet to three feet of the top part hollow. This season (1897)
I watched the operations of two pairs, and, as their times of action
were identical, a description of one will suffice , — On 28th September,
bird No. 1 commenced preparing liole by throwing overboard every
particle of charcoal and chaiTcd wood from bottom and sides of hole.
After the coarser matter was removed, the fine, dry decayed matter
was carefully scraped from evei-y hole and crevice around the inside
and allowed to fall to the bottom of hole. This work continued imtil
22nd October. I visited it each day and always found a bird at work,
but whether male or female, as you ask, I cannot say — perhaps both,
and it is a question for future research. From 22nd to 28th October
one bird sat continually, and I got alanned lest the eggs should be
laid during this period, for although I visited it often five times during
each day, and remained watching till after dark, during these six days
I did not find the bird from the nest. However, on the 28th, the
bird had fiown and left one egg. A second was laid on 30th October,
and from then until 19th November I had no ojiportunity of seeing
what was taking place beneath the sitter, as it could not be persuaded
to leave the nest; rough measures would not do. On this 19th day
broken egg-shells pointed to full incubation of one or more eggs. On
21st and 23rd November more shells, with bird still keeping close on
nest. On 24th November appeared five young birds, with a yellowish
downy appearance, and old birds keeping close on nest till 27th
November, after wiiich t wo voung Ijirds opened their eyes on 1st Decem-
ber. On 4th December (wo young birds appeared, coveri'd with gre)-,
yellowish about iiead and tail feathers, the latter being one inch long.
By loth December two had developed green over body and wings,
with a little grey atill remaining about the head. The remaining three,

A'ESTS A.VD EGGS OI- AU ST KALI AN BIRDS. 65 1

buing less advanced, were partly coloured green and grey. By 19th
December traces of grey had disappeared from all. The first young
bird left nest on "iOlh December. A second loft on the following day,
21st. No. 3 left on the 22nd. Nos. 4 and 5 left on 23rd. Towards
the end of Januaiy, and occasionally as late as the middle of February,
one may see the adult birds fljang from place to place, followed closely
by young bii'ds, which receive their food from the parent bii-ds' bills.
A field of standing oats is much appreciated by this species; failing
this, milk thistle and fiat weed (Hypocharis, sp.) seed come next in
favour. Immigration to warmer parts begins during March, and con-
tinues to mid April, after which no more are seen imtil the following
spring."

It was further observed in another instance that out of five eggs
hatched by the 9th December (1896), two young left the nest on the
10th January, one was taken forcibly for identification for Mr. Hall
on the 11th, and two left 14th January, or thirty-two to thirty-six
days for the batch after being hatched.

Breeding months, end of September to December or Januarj'.

522. — Xeophema ELEGANs, Gould. — (433)
GEASS PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 38.

Reference.— CaX. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. stx., p. 572.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (184S) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 74 (1865).

Geographical Distribution. — -South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, South and West Australia.

Xest. — Within a hole or hollow in a tree.

Eggs. — Clutch, foui- to seven (Gilbert) ; round in form ; texture
of shell fine; surface without gloss; colour, pure white. Dimensions
in inches of a proper clutch : (1) -81 x "68, (2) -8 x -72, (3) -78 x -68,
(4) -77 X -67.

Observations. — In situations conducive to its habits, this truly
elegant little species is found in the southern parts of Austraha, from
east to west. I have been privileged to see it at home about the
margin of lignum swamps and brackish lakes of Victoria, as well as
in Western Australia, which latter counliy Gould deemed the bird's
proper home, and where Gilbert saw them in myriads at certain pools,
there being no other water anywhere near at the time.

Breeding months, end of August, September and October, and
probably later.

552 A'ESTS A.VD £CGS Of AUSTKALIAN BIRDS.

523. — Neophema chrysogastra, Latham. — (434)
ORANGE-BELLIED GRASS PARRAKEET.

figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 39.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 573.

Previous Description of Eggs. — ("ampbell : Southern Sc-ence Record

Geuyraphical Distribution. — New South Wales, Victoria, South
Australia and Tasmania.

Nest. — Usually within a small hollow spout of a fallen tree or log.

Eyys. — Clutch, four to six; round in form; textui'e of shell line;
surface slightly glossy ; colour, pure white. Dimensions in inches of
a pair: (1) -Six 73, {'1) -83 x -75 ; three from a set taken near Ross,
Tasmania: (1) -86 x -74, (2) -84 x -7, (3) -82 x -7.

Observations. — This beautiful species may be readily distinguished
from the other Grass Parrakeets by the rich orange colouring of the
imder surface — hence the appropriate vernacular name Orange-bellied.

This bird belongs to the south-eastern provinces of Austraha,
including Tasmania, where it is found very abundant on the Actseon
Islands at the entrance of D'Entrccasteaux Channel. It was in that
grass and scrub-covered locality Gould obsei-ved, " I frequently flushed
small flocks from among the gi-ass, when they almost immediately
alighted on the barilla bushes aromid me, their sparkling orange bellies
forming a striking contrast with the gi'een of the other parts of their
plumage and the silvery foliage of the plant upon which they rested."

Mr. A. E. Brent informs me that tliis bird usually lays late in the
season (December), depositing its eggs in a small broken spout of a
fallen tree. Gould was induced to believe that the Orange-bellied
Parrakeet laid eggs in holes on the gi-omid.

524. — Neoi'hema petuorhila, Gould. — (435)
ROCK PARRAKEET.

Figure.— Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 40.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 57.1.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — "(-ould : Birds of .\ustralia (1848),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 76 (1865) ; Campbell : Troc. Roy.
Soc, Victoria, vol. iii., new ser., p. 4 (1890) ; North : Rec.
.\ustn. Mus., vol. i., p. 115 (iSyi).

Geographical Distribution. — South and West Australia.

* No dimensions given.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 653

Nest. — In a crevice of a I'ock or under shelving stones, usually on
islets adjacent to the mainland.

Eggs. — Clutch, four to five; some roundish, others eUiptical in
shape; textui-e of shell fine; surface glossy; colour, pure white.
Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch; (1) 1-0 x -75, (2) -98 x '78,
(3) -96 X -75, (4) 95 x -76. The eggs of the Rock Panakeet appear to
be the largest of the genus.

Observations. — This is a romantic little Parrakeet, which prefers to
live on the rocky islets off the coast of South and Western Australia.
Altliough Gould mentions he received specimens of the Rock Parrakeet
from Port Lincoln, it is somewhat unaccoimtable that the bird is not
indicated for South Australia on Dr. Ramsay's " Tabular List."

All that is recorded in Gould respecting the nidification of the Rock
Pan-akeet is the information supplied by Gilbert, who, speaking of Rott-
nest Island, stated the bird breeds in holes of cliffs there, and, according
to the testimony of the natives, lays seven or eight eggs. Tlie natives
overstated the number of eggs, but for the nesting among the rocks
I can vouch, because I enjoyed, during November, 1889, the most
pleasant experiences respecting these little Parrakeets on the identical
island mentioned by Gilbert.

It is a rare pictiu'e to witness a pair of these lovable little creatui'es
in their golden-green plumage, perched on the face of a limestone crag,
amidst such romantic and rugged surroundings. I was singularly suc-
cessful in securing a series of their eggs at Rottnest Island, where the
birds invariably select rocky islets off the main island for breeding
pui^poses, notably Green and PaiTakeet Islands.

By a cuiious coincidence the fii-st person on the island to present
me with specimens of both eggs and live birds was Mr. A. H. Courderot,
a corresponding member of the Society before which I described the
eggs, viz., the Royal Society of Victoria. Other eggs I took myself.
The birds make no nest, but simply deposit four or five eggs under
the slabs of indurated sand or limestone, where the eggs are sometimes
very difficult to reach, especially if a crevice on a steep side sloping to
the water's edge be selected.

According to the " Records " of the Australian Miiseum, the Trus-
tees received specimens in 1891 from the Adelaide Museum, prociu'ed by
Mr. A. H. C. Zeitz, of the latter institute. Birds as well as eggs were
collected in September, 1890, on Spilsby, one of the Sir Joseph Banks
Group, in Spencer's Gulf.

In describing one of these eggs, Mr. North veiy properly was
careful to acknowledge that Gilbert found the Rock Parrakeet breeding
in the holes of the most precipitous cliffs on Rottnest Island, but he
(Mr. North) overlooked the fact, published in the Royal Society of
Victoria's " Proceedings, " that I had given a detailed description of
these nesting places on outlying rocks, also of the eggs, which Gilbert
was unable to secure, from the same quarter.
Breeding season September to December.

6t;4 A'ESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

525. — Neophema pulchella, Shaw. — (436)
RED-SHOULDERED GRASS PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 41.

Rejerence. — Cat. Birds Brit. -Mus., vol. xx., p. 575.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1S83); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 263 (1889).

GeograyUical Distribution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, and South Australia.

Xest. — Within a hole in a tree or in a hollow log.

Eggs. — Clutch, four to five usually, eight maximum ; round oval
in shape ; texture of shell somewhat fine ; surface glossy ; colour, pure
white. Dimensions in inches of a pair taken in Gippsland : (1) -OS x '75,
(2) "92 X "75 ; of a clutch (according to the Australian Museum
" Catalogue ") : (1) -88 x -72, (2) -85 x -7, (3) -8 x -71, (4) -8 x -7.

Ohaervatinns. — This exquisite species is found in the more thickly
timbered tracts of South-eastern Australia. The late Mr. T. A.
Forbes-Lcith stated this lovely Grass PaiTakcet wanders to Gippslajid
in spring, when it is gcnerall}- seen in pairs, or perhaps three or four
together. I think it was this species we used to flush from the rich
alluvial flats at the foot-hills of the Dandenongs.

Mr. Percy Ramsay, long since — August, 1859 — took at Macquarie
Fields, New South Wales, a set of these rare Grass Parrakeets' eggs,
which, however, remained undcscribed for thirtj' years, till the
" Catalogue " of the Australian Museum appeared in 1889.

The eggs in my collection, taken at Berwick, Victoria, are larger
in the dimensions than the Macquarie Fields' set, and were iden-
tified by the wing of the bird shot by the same person who took the
eggs. However, the finding of another authenticated clutch of these
scarce eggs will be welcomed with interest.

Breeding season, August to December.

526. — NnopirEMA splendida, Gould.- -(437)
SCARLET-CHESTED GRASS PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Auslrrilia, fol., vol. v., pi. 42.
Reference.— Cm. Birds Brit. Mns., vol. xx., p. 157(1.

ncntirnphirnl Distrilnlian . — New South Wales, Vic(ori:i, South
and West Australia.

NeM iinij Eiiiis. — Sec Appendix.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 65-

Observafion.i. — Gould much regretted he was unable to give more than
a brief notice of this beautiful aud truly " Splendid " Grass Parrakeet.
We arc not much better off to-day. I supjKJse it is no wonder, because
this bird has been characterised as very shv in disposition and nowhere
numerous.

527. — Nanodes discolor, Shaw. — (433)
SWIFT LORIKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 47.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. x.\., p. 592.
Previous Desrriftions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1S53); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 266 (1889).

Geographical Distribution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, South Australia, and Tasmania.

Xe-H. — Within a hole, usually in a dead branch of a tree.

Egg.'i. — Clutch, two to three on the mainland, in Tasmania stated
to be four to six ; roimdish in form ; textme of shell fine ; surface
with or without gloss; colour, white, usually stained with the wood
dust of the nest. Dimensions in inches of a clutch : (1) -98 x -79,
(2) -96 X -8, (3) -93 x -78.

Ohxervafifiiis. — The plumige of the Swift Lorikeet (upper and under)
is green, with deep blue on the forehead and wing edges, relieved with
scarlet on the face, shoulder, and underneath the wings. Taken alto-
gether it is an elegant species, about ten inches in length.

As Gould remarks, this fine Lorikeet is a migratory, or rather, it
should be stated, a nomadic .species, passing the summer and breechng
season in its more southern or rather south-eastern part of the Avis-
tralian Continent and Tasmania. The species has not been recorded
farther north than South Queensland.

The late Mr. T. A. Forbes-Leith says a few of these Pan-ots may
be met with throughout Victoria at all seasons.

During September and the four following months, Gould found the
Swift Lorikeet not only abundant in the giun forests of Tasmania,
but common in the gardens of Hobart, where, within a few feet of the
heads of the passing inhabitants, the birds were feeding upon the
honey of the fresh-blown eucalypt flowers. Some of the birds had so
surfeited themselves with the saccharine matter, that on being shot
and held up by the feet, the liquid discharged itself from their mouths.

How is it, then, that this bird is not classed by recent authorities
mth the honey-eating PaiTots — Lorikeets ? Pei-haps it is because the
Swift Lorikeet is not entirely a honey-eating bird. Mr. C. French, jun.,
brought under my notice one of these birds, shot in the Botanical
Gardens (3rd October, 1896), wliich had a crop full of the larvae of a
certain insect.

656 NESTJ; AA'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

The Swift-flying Lorikeet still continues to visit Tasmania regularly,
in numbers small or gi-eat. It follows the flowering eucalypts wher-
ever they bloom, which blooming is irregular or according to seasons.
We had quite an imiptioii of these birds (at least I took them to be
this species from what I can recollect) at Malvem, Victoria, when the
red-gum trees were in flower. The birds were in hundreds. We (other
boys and I) shot a string of them to make a Parrot pie.

When shot, the birds, although dead, used to hang from the branch,
head downwards, for a considerable time before the feet released their
grip. Proceeding home, the string we had shot became besmeared with
the hone}' that e.xuded freely from their mouths, and had a heavy
nauseous odour.

Gould found these Lorikeets breeding about midway between
Hobart and Brown's River, but unfortunately he did not obtain eggs,
in consequence of the birds nesting in holes of the loftiest and most
inaccessible trees.

Mr. A. E. Brent, who states he has taken eggs from many nests
of the Swift Lorikeet, says he never found less than four to a clutch,
and sometimes as many as six.*

Principal laying months November and December.

528. — Melopsittacus undulatus, snaw. — (439)
BETCHERRYGAH OR WARBLING GRASS PARRAKEET.

Fif:iire. — Gould : Birds of .-\ustralia, fol., vol. v., pi. 44.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., \o\. xx., p. 594.

Prnnout Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of .Australia {1848) ,

al<;n Handbook, vol. ii., p. 82 (1865); North: Austn. Mus.

Cat., p. 264 (iSSq).

Geographicfil DixfrihiitiDii. — Australia in general.

Nest. — Within a liole or hollow spout of a tree.

^.'7.'/'*- — Clutch, five to eight, one instance known of nine; round
oval in shape ; texture of sliell fine ; sm-face without gloss ; colour, pure
white, occasionally stained witli wood dust. Dimensions in inches of a
maximum clutch; (1) -77 x "58, (2) -76 x -6. (3) -7.5 x -61. (4) -75 x -6.
(5) -74 X -6, (6) -74 x -59, (7) -72 x -58.

Observations. — One need hardly give a description of this little Parrot,
which is so well known in its dress of pale greenish-yellow, each feather
having a crescent-shaped, dark brownish mark near the extremity and an
under surface of bright green. The face and throat are yellow, curiously
ornamrnted on cacli check with a small patch of tlie richest liluc The

•These numbers clash with the experience of collectors on the mainland.
where the bird lays two or three eggs, usually only two.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

65;

sexes arc undistinguishnblp outwardly, except that the adult male has
the cere or nostrils bluish in roloiir, whilst the same part on the female is
brownish. Total length, about 7 A inches.

Where are the flocks of these lovely little Parrakeets that from the
far interior used periodically to visit Victoria and other pai-ts of Southern
Australia when the grass seeds were ripening? " Bocavise their primi-
tive feeding gi-ounds have been destroyed by the depasturing of other
flocks (stock)." is the significant reply of an old and experienced bird
trapper.

The Warbling Grass Parrakeets used to appear in the south about
tlie same time as the sprightly Cockatoo Parrakect, namely, about the
beginning of August.

On arriving at Brezi. to the north of Liverpool Plains, in the beginning
of December (1839), Gould found himself siuTounded bv numbers of
these PaiTakeets, breeding in all the hollow spouts of the large eucalvpta
bordering on the Mokai, and in crossing the plains between that river and
the Peel, in the direction of the Turi Mountains, he saw them in flocks
of thousands. By the end of the month the young were well able to
provide for themselves. The birds were first called " Betcherrygah "
bv the aborigines of the Livei-pool Plains.

Rnrelv does the sweet little Shell PaiTakeet or " Betcherrygah " fly
south of MelboTU-ne. Tlie late Mr. H. W. Wlieelwiight ha,s stated that,
in the middle of the summer of 1854, the gum-trees in the neighbourhood
of Mordialloc " swanned with them." They remained about one month,
when they suddenly disappeared.

As cage birds, the "Warbling Grass Parrakeets are general favourites.
Gould was one, if not the first, to introduce living examples to Britain,
having succeeded in binnging seveival with him on his return in 1840.

The late Mr. Forbes-Leith states : — " When those charming little
Pan-akeets were first taken to England, dealers could not supply the

demand at fourteen guineas per pair I have known

these Parrakeets to breed in confinement ; and one pair that escaped in
London, about twenty years ago, reared a brood of young in the Temple
Gardens."

Tlie habits of this little Parrakeet coming to water, mentioned by
Mr. Ford, and given in connection with the Cockatoo Parrakeet, are
substantiated by Mr. R. J. Dalton, who says : " The Warbling Grass
Parrakeets have a very peculiar wav of cbnnking. They never land, bvit
fly in mobs to water, take a mouthful then circle round, repeating the
performance. As each bird is satisfied it drops out, and the mob finally
dwindles away."

Breeding months, August to December. In the Interior they
apparentlv sometimes breed diu*ing winter, according to the season, for
during the progress of the Horn Scientific Expedition, in the winter of
1894. numbers of nests were examined that contained young birds.

On the Minilga, Western Australia, Mr. T. Carter has taken eggs as
early as August, and has seen young in March. He says these little
Parrakeets appear to lay after a good rain.

During the Calvert Expedition (1896) to the North-west, through-
out the whole of the country traversed, these birds were noted.
42

658 NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTHAUAN BIRDS.

They were breeding in Jul}' and August, and numbers of eggs and young
birds were seen. On July 26th, Mr. G. L. Jones took young birds fully
fledged from a hollow limb, in which he foiuid four nests. Two of the
latter contained fresh eggs. Other nestlings were seen on August 26th.
As these birds require to drink frequently, their presence was always noted
and their covu'se watched. They travel immense distances to feed, and
in the vicinity of Johanna Springs flocks of several thousands were seen
going to some favotuite feeding-place soon after simrise. On throe
occasions Mr. Keartland saw a beautiful yellow bird flying in the flock.
Tliese abnormal birds were described as being as richly coloured as
Norwich Canaries. Incubation lasts about twenty days, and the young
remain in the nest about five weeks.

When in the Gulf of Carpentaria district, some years ago,
Dr. W. Macgillivray recollects a remarkable occurrence of these little
PaiTots coming in such numbers along the scantily-timbered creeks, that
all ordinary holes and spouts soon became occupied, and some birds had
to take to hollow logs upon the ground, wherein they nested side by
side ; all stages from fresh eggs to young birds being seen in the
same log.

529. — Pezoporus formosus, Latham. — (441)
GROUND PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 46.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 596.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist

(1887) ; North : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. ii., 2nd

ser., p. 410 (1887).

Geographical Disfrihufitin. — South Queensland (?), New South
Wales, Victoria, South and West Australia and Tasmania, including the
Furnoaux Group.

Nest. — A somewhat deep hollow in the ground, evenly lined with
fine grass, &c., under a tussock of giass — usually a button-grass tussock
in Tasmania. A nest in the Australian Museum is composed of rushes
and wire-grass, bitten into .suitable lengths, bent and roughly interwoven
into a platform about 4i inches in diameter and about half-an-inch
thick.

Eggn. — Clutch, three to four; round in form ; texture of .shell fine ;
surface glossy ; colour, white. Dimensions in inches of a clutch :
(1) ]-ll X -8, (2) 1-1 X -87, (3) 1-09 x -9.

Ohservations. — This most interesting and purely teiTcstrinl fonn of
PaiTot is likely soon to become extinct. Not onlv arc its native haunts
b-'ing destroyed, but such vciTnin as foxes and wild cats prowl through
the country.

NESTS AND E'.GS OF AUSTKALIAN BI/WS. 659

The original geogi-aphical range of the Ground Parrakeet was across
Southern Australia from east to west, including Tasmania and Flinders
Island, where it existed in localities suitable to its peculiar habits, i.e.,
sandy sterile ti'acts covered with coarse covert or swampy places of rank
herbage. Its call is a feeble twitter. I'he Ground Parrakeet is mottled
golden-green and black ; has comparatively large feet, and a pheasant-
shaped tail; and in total length is between 11 inches and 12 inches. It
emits a strong scent, so that game-dogs readily point at the bird.

On Flinders Island Gould found the Swamp or Ground Pan-akeet
breeding on the scrubby places which cover a greater portion of that
rough island ; but, although he obtained young birds, he did not secure
eggs, which no doubt accounts for his over-estimating the number of
e^g^ to a clutch.

Mr. E. D. Atkinson, C.E., of Tasmania, kindly supplied the following
with the eggs : — " Three eggs in nest, which was deeplv hollowed out of
the gi'ound under a button-grass tussock, evenly lined with fine grass and
most cai-efuUy concealed. Had not the bird flown from under my horse
('' who nearly put his foot in it '), I should certainly not have found this
prize." Xlie nest was taken about the beginning of October. These
Parrots used to be plentiful in the neighboiu-hood of Cariiim Carrimi
Swamp, but with the reclamation of that morass, which is now occupied
by smiling farms, where potatoes of gi-eat proportions grow, the place
that knew the birds then " knows them no more for ever.'' The only
record left of their having been found there is contained in a very interest-
ing volume, published many years ago, entitled, " Bush Wanderings of
a Nattu-alist," by the late Mr. H. W. Wheelwright. He foiuid the eggs
of the. Swamp (Ground) PaiTot, four in number (" white, and more oblong
than those of the other species of Pan-ots "), on the ground amongst tlie
heath.

Mr. North writes : — " Dr. Ramsay informs me tliis bird used to breed
freely in the neighbourhood of Appin, in the long, tussocky grass, during
the months of September, October and November, and that the young
birds afford excellent sport about the end of January."

In the olden days, when out riding at the Reedbeds. near Adelaide,
Mr. W. White tells me it was no uncommon occurrence, upon flushing a
Groimd Parrakeet, to see his black tracker jump off his horse, rifle the
nest and eat the eggs.

530. — Geopsitt.\cus occidentalis, Gould. — (442)
NIGHT PARRAKEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., supp., pi. 66.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx., p. 598.

GeDfjraphiral Distrihution. — ^Victoria, South (including Central),
West and North-west Australia.

Next. — On the ground, usually in porcupine ( Spinifer) grass.

Ef/ffn. — Clutch, foiu- to five. Undescribed.

660 NESTS AND EGGS 01- AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Observations. — The Night Parrakeet is peculiai'ly interesting from
the fact that it is the only species of its family in AustraUa having
nocturnal liabits. Moreover, with the exception of the Ground
Parrakeet ( Pezoporuf: furmosus), it is the only Pan'ot that attempts to
construct a nest.

The Night Parrakeet ranges across Southern Australia, living chiefly
in the porcupine or spinifex grass of diy and arid tracts. The bird lias
been obsei-ved in the Wimmera district, Victoria, where it was reported
a nest containing five egga was found in some porcupine grass.

The following interesting " Notes on the Night Panot " were read
by the late Mr. F. W. Andiews before the Royal Society of South
Australia, 6tli Fcbniary, 1893 : — "Dining the d^y this bird lies concealed
in I he in.side of a tussock or bunch of porcupine grass (Trinilid ), the
inside being piilU'd out and a snug retreat formed for its protection.
Here, also, its rough nest is formed, and fom" wliite eggs laid. When
the dark sliades of evening have fairly set in, it comes out to feed, but
generally flies direct to the nearest water, which is often a considerable
distance from its nest ; in some instances I have known them fly a distance
of fom- or five miles. After drinking and shaking themselves up a little,
they fly oft' to feed on the seeds of the porcupine grass, retvmiing to water
two or three times during the night.

" The name given to this bird by the aborigines is ' MyiTlumbing,'
from the supposed resemblance of their whistling note to the sound of
that word. They have also a very peculiar croaking note of alai-m
whilst at the water, wliich much resembles the loud croak of a frog.
On one occasion one of these Parrots was caught in a hut, where it had
apparently been attracted by the light of a bush lamp ; it was put into
a box, wiiii a handfid of dry gi-ass. On examination the next morning
the bird could not be seen ; it had placed the dry grass in a heap and had
di'awn out the inside straw by straw luitil it had formed a hole, in which
it had concealed itself.

" These birds are pretty generally distributed through the north and
north-west of this colony ; they come and go according to the nature of
the season. When the early season is wet, the porcupine gi'ass flomishes
and bears large quantities of seed, on which the birds feed ; but if, on
the contrary, the season is a dry one, the grass docs not seed, and no birds
are to be seen.

" I shot some specimens at Cooper's Creek in 1875 when out as col-
lecting naturalist for the late Mr. J. W. Lewis, in his exploration of the
country about Lake Eyre. They were in that district observed to
conceal themselves during the day in the thick patclics of shrulibv
samphire on the salt flats bordering the creeks on Lake Eyre. '

The Calvert Expedition (1896) obtained evidences of the Nigiit
Parrakeet in the North-west desert as far north as Separation 'Well.'*

* 'While on the subject of the North-west, I may mention a bird called the
.Spinifex Parrakeet, which is stated to have been discovered by Mr. .\. Calvert
during a former expedition (iSqi). I have not seen the Parrot named on any
.Au.stralian list. The following is its description, taken from "The ICnglish
Illustrated Magazine," vol. x. (1892-3) :— " .Six and a quarter inches long ; head,
brilliant cobalt-bluc, which blended into softer tints down the back ; wings
covered with bright-blue ijuill feathers; the breast, emerald green upon a
ground-work of orange-yellow ; the belly feathers also yellow, and tail feathers
flaming yellow, edged with emerald-green."

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NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 65i

ORDER— COL UMB/E: PIGEONS AND DOVES.
Sub=order— Columba : Pigeons.

FAMILY— TRERONlDyE.

Sub-family — PTiLopuDiNiE.

531. — Ptulopus swainsoni, Gould. — (451)
RED-CROWNED FRUIT PIGEON.

Figure. — Gould ; Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 55.

Rejirenu. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 95.

Previous Description of Eggs. — Campbell ; Victorian Naturalist,
vol. xiv., p. 5 (1S97).

Gidyraphical Distributmit. — Queensland and New South Wales, also
New Guinea.

Nest. — A vei-y slight platform, 0 or 6 inches across and about 2
inches in thickness, composed of dry twigs placed in a slender homontal
fork. The contents may be easily seen through the nest from beneath.

Eijys. — Clutch, one; an elhpse in form; texttu'e of shell hue; surface
glossy; coloiu", white. Dimensions in inches: 1'16 x 'SI. A smaller
and narrower example measures : 108 x -73.

Observations. — The various fmit-eating Pigeons, for the beauty of
their painted plumage, are amongst the most gorgeous of Austrahan
bkds. They inhabit chiefly the lu.xiu-iant scrubs of Eastern Australia.

How delightful to stroll through these scrtibs at early morn ! The
CoachwliijJ Buds, with then- sharp, cracking sounds, are waking up every-
thing, and are heard with the sweet notes of Thickheads and Warblers
and the gurghng whistle of the Yellow-eared (Lewin) Honeyeater,
to an accompaniment of cooing Pigeons — notably the high-pitched con-
tinuous call of the Wonga-Wonga in contrast to the mufllcd and bass
notes of the Magnificent or Purple-breasted Fruit Pigeon hard by in the
leafy canopy. Aloft may be seen the Topknots' heads, where the .svm's
rays are also gilding the upper boughs of a tamarind-tree and
the bunches of acrid fruit upon which the Pigeons are feeding. The
discharge of my gim silences for a second or two all immediate sounds,
frightening a beautiful cock Regent Bird high over the track, wlule a
lovely pair of the Swainson Doves, or Red-crowned Wood Pigeons, falls
on the forest floor as the smoke of the murderous weapon hangs in the
damp morning air.

66? NESTS AND EGGS Of AC ST KALIAN BUWS.

During my visit to the " Big Scmb " of Richmond River, New South
Wales, in 1891, I noticed many of these beautiful Red-crowned Fruit
Pigeons, and although I sought diligently for a nest, as in the case of
the rare Rifle Bird, I returned home without it. However, in 1897, I was
enabled to describe tlie nest and eggs of this Fruit Pigeon from speci-
mens kindly forwarded to me by Mr. W. T. Bailey. The nest was taken
with a considerable amoimt of risk and difficulty by Mr. Isaac vFoster,
in a buoyong sapling, at the height of about fifty feet from the gi-ound.
Date, 31st November, 1896. A second nost, containing an egg, was
found by Mr. Bailey, 5th of Febraary following.

The call of the Red-crowned Fi^uit Pigeon is remarkably loud for so
small a bird, being a, single " coo " repeated twelve or thirteen times —
accelerando diminuendo, as a musician would say, the first few "coos"
being slow and measured, then uttered more rapidly each time till the
last notes almost run into each other; at the same time the tones
become softer and almost inaudible, as if tlie bird were some distance
away.

It is said that this Fiiiit Pigeon is rarely found upon the ground, but
one morning I flushed a pair from some inkwced. They perched
quite close to me — a loving, mated pair, with almost erect carriage, and,
with pardonable pride, displaying their richly-coloured breasts. The
female appeared generally lighter in colour, while the colouring on her
breast was not so brilliant as on her mate. Their light gi'cenish ch-ess
blended into the greyish head with a crimson-coloured cap or crown.
Ihe chest and neck were most beautifully hackled with greenish-grey,
while the gi'eenish flanks and abdomen were enriched by a patch of orange
and purple in the centre. The eyes of this little feathered gem were soft
orange set in yellomsh-green eyelids. Feet and short bill were also
greenish.

Respecting this fine little Fruit Pigeon in more northern quarters,
Mr. Kendall Broadbent states: — " Swainson's Fruit Pigeon (Ptilopns
xwdinnoni ) is to be found in all the Caidwell scrubs in September,
while on its summer migi-atory journey southward. The time of its
return to the Cape York district is March, and it is most abundant there
during the winter months following, being quite absent in summer. The
bird does not breed at Cardwell, its passage through this part being
merely a stage of its journey to South Queensland, which it reaches in
October. Being a true fniit eater, it is to be found in the scnibs whicli
clothe the ranges and border tlic rivers all the way from Clarence Rivir
to Cape Yoi-k, and is not piocurabk- in inland scrubs, such as at Chin-
chilla and Barcaldine. It lives to a large degree on the figs, &c., in tlie
scrubs, the little yellow fig seeming toi be most favom'ed. In this district
the Pigeon feeds in company with M. rmximi/ix, a congener, and the
Yellow Fig Bird (Sjili/rofhrres ) on a wild fig wliicli attains perfection in
May. Occasionally, so loath arc they to retire from the ri])e berries,
that I have been enabled to confine my shooting operations to one com-
paratively small fig-tree for the day. The bird is most prolific. An
idea of its abundance at this place may be obtained when I mention that
I have obtained nine brace, besides numbei-s of other birds, before an early
breakfast."

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 56^

532. — Ptlloi'ls EwiNGi, Gould. — (452)
ROSE-CROWNED FRUIT PIGEON.

/"«^««.^Gould : Birds of Australia, iul., vol. v., pi. 56.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. gb.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Le Souef : Proc. Roy. Soc, Victoria,
vol. vii. new ser. p. .23 (1S95), also Ibis, p. 394 (1897).

Geugra pineal DUtribution. — Nortliern Territory and North Queeus-
laud.

Stst. — A slightly-biiilt platform, about '2.\ mches in diameter, com-
posed of small sticks.

Eyys. — Clutch, one ; elliptically iuchued, with occasioually one end
pecuharly pointed; texture of shell fine, except at the smaller end,
wliich is somew^hat granular ; siu-face slightly glossy ; coIoui% pure
white. Dimensions in inches : (1) 1'2 x -86, (2j 118 x -85.

Ohservationis. — This lovely httle Pigeon is a native of the northern
coast of Austraha, and differs from the Red-crowned Fruit Pigeon, as
Gould points out, in being smaller in all its dimensions, and in the
colom- of the crown being rose-pink instead of crimson-red, (fcc.

Mr. D. Le Souef observed this beautiful Pigeon in the thick scrub
on the higher land near the Bloomfield River. He wi'ites : " We were
fortunate ia finding two of their nests on the 24th October (1894),
one on the banks of the Annan River, in a small tree about eight feet
from the ground ; o"ne contained a yomig bird newly hatched, and the
hen bird let us approach within three feet of her nest before she flew
ofE. The other nest was placed in a somewhat similar situation, and
contained one fresh egg." Mr. Le Souef added, that when the bird
was flushed it was astonishing how the contents could remain in a nest
so fraU and shallow.

Two seasons afterwards, when Mr. Harry Barnard was collecting
for Mr. Le Souef and others, he found the pretty Rose-crowned Fruit
Pigeons breeding in the mangroves at Cape York, seldom seeing them
elsewhere. One nest was taken in October, one in November, two in
December, and one in Januarj-, a-s late as the 2Sth. The nests were
placed usually at a height of from four to thirty feet above the water,
and were generally found by observing the bird dash of as Mr. Barnard
was ploughing through the black mud, up to his knees, and harassed
by myriads of sandfhes.

Breeding season September to February.

533. — Ptilopus alligator, Collett.
BLACK-BANDED FRUIT PIGEON.

Figure. — Proc. Zool. Soc, pi. 29 (i8g8).
Reference. — Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 354 (iSg.S).

Geographical Distribution. — Northern Territory.

f,54 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Nest and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Observations. — The Black-banded Friut I'igeon was discovered by
Dr. Dahl near the South Alhgator River, Northern Territory, whore
it seems to be a very local species. Tv^o specimens (male and female)
were shot on the 15th June, 1895, from a flock found feeding on a
bon-jon tree (a species of Ficus). Theu- food is said to consist mainly
of the fruit of this tree.

I may mention that Dr. Knut Dahl is a Norwegian uatui'aUst, who
visited North and North-west Australia dming the years 1894-5, col-
lecting natural lustory specimens for the Zoological Museum,
Christiania. Amongst other valuable items he discovered, much to
the intei-est of Australian ornithologists, were three species of birds
new to science.

For the beautiful Pigeon vmder consideration Professor CoUett
has proposed the somewhat harsh name of uUigatur (after the region
in which the biid was found, no doubt) ; but on the vernacular hst
we may call it by the distinguishing title, Black-banded Fruit Pigeon.

The following is Professor Collett's technical description ; — " Head
and upper neck wliite ; lower neck and chest whitish-cinnamon ; mantle
slate-black; lower back greyish-black, rump and upper tail coverts
clear grey, the latter inclining to whitish. Lower parts ashy-gfi'oy,
separated from the chest by a broad black baud ou the lower breast,
sharply defined against the chest. Wings slate-black, lower sui^face of
the quills grey, the coverts more greyish-brown. Tail slate-black, vrith
an ajiical greyish-white band about one and a-half inches in breadth ;
under siu-face of the tail clearer grey ; under tail coverts whitish.
Bill (in skin) light-coloured, the tips yellowish ; feet reddish."

534. — Ptilopus superbus, Temminck. — (453)
PURPLE-CROWNED FRUIT PIGEON.

I'igure. — Gould : Birds of AustraUa, fol., vol. v., pi. 57.

Rejerence. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 112.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Linn. See, N.S.
Wales, vol. viii., p. 28 (1883); Ramsay: Proc, Linn. Soc,
N.S. Wales, vol. i., 2nd ser., p. 1151 (1SS6) ; Le Souc-f : I'roc.
Roy. Soc, Victoria, vol. vii., new ser., p. 22 (1S95).

(Icographical Distrihutiuii. — Northern Territory, Queensland, New
South Wales and Tasmania (casual); also New Guinea and adjacent
islands, and Moluccas.

Nest. — A platform, about three inches in diameter, composed of
a few twigs. Usually .situated in scrub or in a small tree at a height
of from two feet to ten feet from the ground.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 665

Eyga. — Cluteh, one usually ; elliptical iii form ; texture of shell
somewhat fine, excepting the smallei- end, which is sUghtly granular;
sm-facc glossy ; coloiu-, white, slightly toned or of a faint creamy tint.
Dimensions in inches : (1) 1-22 x -88. (2) M5 x -87.

Observations. — This chai-ming ajid truly superb little Pigeon enjoys
a somewhat extensive range, but as far as the mainland is concerned
it is chiefly foimd in the scrubs of North and North-eastern Austx'alia.
It is about the s;imc size as the Red-crowned (Swainson) Fruit Pigeon,
but wears a darker green dress, has a baud of black below its greyish
breast, and a deep, rich, pmple patch on the crown of the head, which
appears only on the male bird.

Dr. Ramsay described, in 1886, or rather re-described (having pre-
viously given a description of one from New Guinea) an egg of the
Superb Fiaiit Pigeon, taken by the late Mr. T. H. Bowyer-Bower in
the scrabs near Cairns, stating that " two only are laid for a sitting,"
and that the eggs are " white."

Mr. Kendall Broadbent, who also afiimis that tliis Pigeon lays
two eggs, states: — "The Superb Fruit Pigeon (Ptilopus superb us J,
unlike the first^mentioned (Swainson's), does not travel far south of
Cardwell. It remains at Cardwell from September to March, in large
numbers, and during the rest of the year is comparatively scarce.
At the Cape it is tolerably abundant for a short period — a month or
so about March — and then disappears altogether, for none winter at
Cape York. The note is very gruff, resembling the soimd ' wlioot '
uttered at short intervals, and may be heard at a considerable distance
from the spot of its emission. The bird is arboreal, like Swainson's,
whose fruit-eating habits it also follows. Being veiy shy, it is rarely
found outside the scrubs. The nest is made in a small bush, and con-
strvicted loosely of a few sticks, which just sei-ve to retain the eggs
when laid. The usual clutch consists of two eggs, which are generally
visible to an observer from the grovuid. '

However, during his Bloomfield River trip, Mr. D. Le Souef
procured several nests of this beautiful Httle Pigeon, each with
a Singh egg only. Mr. Le Souef proceeds to say ; " We found one
nest with a yoimg bird in, built in a small shrub, about two feet fi-om
the ground, and another on 27th October on a small bush, which was
growing some two feet out of a crevice of a rock overhanging a preci-
pice, and it was with some difficulty that I managed to secure the egg."

Writing again, Mr. Le Souef states : — " When in the open forest
countiy, several nests of the Purple-crowned Fiaiit Pigeon (P. mperhus)
were found. Their nests were always situated in some thick-leaved tree.
They were built near the ends of the branches, nearly hidden in the
foliage. In every case it was tlie male bird that was sitting on the
nest."

Mr. H. Barnard's collecting efforts at Cape York during the season
of 1896-7 were richly rewarded as regards the eggs of this lovely
little Fruit Pigeon. One nest was foimd October 10th, two in Nov-
ember, three in January, and two on February 10th. The nests in
eveiy instance contained a single egg.

Breeding season September to Februai-y.

566 NESTS A. YD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

535. — Megaloprepia magnifica, Temminck. — (454)
PURPLE-BREASTED FRUIT PIGEON.

figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 58.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 167.

Previous Descripiions oj Eggs. — Diggles : Companion Gould's Hand-
book, p. 59 (1877) ; North : Rec. Austn. Mus., vol. iii., p. 16
(1897); Campbell: Victorian Naturalist, vol. .xiv., p. 5 (1897);
Le Souef : Ibis, p. 393 (1897).

Geijyraijhical Dixtrihutimi. — Queensland aud New South Wales.

Ned. — Substantial for a Pigeon, slightly concave, almost entirely
composed of wire-like tendrils of climbing plants, placed upon a founda-
tion of a few coarse twigs. Dimensions about 6 inches across by 2^
inches in depth.

E(j(js. — Clutch, one ; elongated in form, considerably pointed
towards the smaller end ; texture of shell somewhat granular ; surface
sUghtly glossy and irregular. Dimensions in inches: 1-77 x 105.

O/ixf'i-LYifinns. — This splenchd large and highly-coloured Fruit Pigeon
thrives upon the fruits of the scrubs of the eastern coastal regions.
I first heard this bird's peculiar notes in the Cardwell Scrub, 1885.
Six years afterwards I renewed its acquaintance in the Big Scrub,
Richmond River, New South Wales. Here my companion brought
down a pair. How we achnired their handsome rich green
coats, brightened with almost a metallic sheen on the wings
and shoulders, the latter being spangled with j'ellow ! Tlie green
of the coats blends beautifully into the French-grey of the head,
which is relieved with dark-orange irides, or eyes, and a dull-red
bill tipped with orange. Turning one of the birds upon its back, we
find the whole of its breast of a rich plum-colour ; stomach and under
tail coverts yellowish-orange, with large hand-like greenish feet, well
formed for perching on trees. The bird was first named the Magni-
ficent Fruit Pigeon. By the dwellers of the scrub it is simply called
the Green Pigeon. The total length of the bird is about 1 7 inches,
and when ready for the pot it weighs 1 .', potmds, sometimes 1 'l pounds.
At certain seasons these birds are very fat, especially in June and July,
when the figs are ripest. On falling to the ground, when shot, the birds
often burst asunder.

Although we could hear the hoarse, deep call of " wallock-a-woo "
in the thick leafy Ijovvers of the scrub, we rarely saw the birds, except
in the tamarind trees, where they were detected by the sparkling
orange colour of the underneath part of their wings, which they flapped
in order to balance themselves while feasting upon the bunches of
agreeable acrid fruit. Wc only found one nest of the magnificent
I'lU'plc-breastcd Fruit Pigeon. It was pointed out to us by scrub-
fallers, who saw the birds carrying the material for con.structioii, but
was subsequently deserted, probably on account of the scrul>falliug

lifESTS AND EGGS OF AX'STRALIAN BIRDS. 66/

in the viduity. Tlie uest was a spriugy platform, constructed of vine
teudiils, and was placed in a biioyong sapling.

An authenticated nest and egg were subsequently forwarded to
me by Mr. W. T. Bailey, Kichmoud River. They were taken by
Mr. Isaac Foster, on the 2nd Febniaiy, 1897, in a black myrtle, at the
height of about fifteen feet from the ground. Newly-Iiatched young
have been observed in the same distiict about the middle of November.

Regarding this large Pigeon in Northern Queensland, Mr. Kendall
Broadbent's testimony is : — " The Magnificent Fniit Pigeon, or Wompoo
of the blacks, is common in all the river and mountain scrubs of the
district, though it is to be observed that it is of rather smaller size
than its representative in Southern Queensland, while not so small as
M. assiinilis, which is found to the north. The Wompoo breeds in
January, and for its nest fixes five or six twigs. Two ( ?) eggs are laid
at a sitting. The site of the nest is frequently a mountain gully.
The bird does not take to the ground. In the fiiiit sea-son hundreds
of these beautiful birds collect in the scinibs of the Tully and Murray
Rivers."

In Carl Lumholtzs work, " Among Cannibals " (1890), tlie author
states he saw several nests of the Purple-breasted Frait Pigeon in the
mountains, built near tlie outer end of a branch. Tlie nest was
carelessly constructed — simply a few sticks. Lumholtz never found
more tlian one egg in these nests. The natives, who are fond of
eating the yoimg, generally shake them down.

536. — Meg.\l(jpkepi.\ assimilis, Gould. — (455)
ALLIED FRUIT PIGEON.

figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 67.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 168.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — North: Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wale.s,
vol. ii., 2nd ser., p. 410 (1S87) ; Le Souef : Proc. Roy. Soc,
Victoria, vol. vii., new ser., p. zi, (1895).

Geijijruiihirnl Di^trihiifion . — North Queensland.

yesf. — A platform of small twigs, about four inches in diameter ;
usually placed at a height of from ten to fifteen feet from tlie gi'ound,
in a small tree, frequently overhanging a stream, in thick scrub.

Ecjgs. — Clutch, one usually ; shape varies from an ellipse to long
oval ; texture of shell comparatively fine, except the smaller end, which
is granular ; surface sUglitly glossy, but tiny nodules appear here and
there in some examples. Dimensions in inches: (1) 1-44 x -96.
(2) 1-41 X 1-04.

Observations. — This brilhant Fruit Pigeon is a northern and smaller
variety of the Purple-breasted Fruit Pigeon, and is found chiefly in

G68 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

the Cape York Peninsula, where it is fairly plentiful, and seems to
take the place of the other.

Mr. North states : — " A nest of this species, found at Cape York,
by Mr. George Masters, on the 17th September, 1875, from which the
bird was flushed a-ud procured, was simply a few dried sticks placed
crosswise on a horizontal branch of a tree, about eight feet from the
ground. The nest contained two eggs (dimensions of one only given),
in an advanced state of incubation. '

Mr. Le Souef, to whom I am indebted for the eggs of this species,
when visiting the Bloomfield River, took three nests, on 23rd, 27th
October, and 3rd November respectively. Only one egg was in each
nest.

Mr. W. B. Barnard says this Fiaiit Pigeon builds sometimes as
low as ten feet from the ground. The first nest he took was on the
30th August, and found others up to the middle of December. He
never found more than one egg in a nest.

At Cape York, season 1896-7, his brother, Mr. Harry Barnard,
took no less than seventeen nests, namely, end of October, four;
diuing November, five ; December, two, and Januaiy, six. No nest
contained more than a single egg.

Breeding months, August to January, or later.

Sub-family — Carpophagin^.

537. — Myristicivora spilorrhoa, G. R. Gray. — (457)
NUTMEG PIGEON.

Figure-. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 6o.

Rejerencc. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 231.

Previous Descriptions oj Eggs. — *Gould : Birds of Austr.ilia (1S45),

also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 115 (1865); Ramsay: Troc. Zool.

Soc, p. 115 (1876); North: Kec. Austn. Mus., vol. i., p. Ii5

(1891).

Geographical Dktrllmtioii. — Northern Territory, North Queens-
land; also New Guinea and adjacent islands.

Nest. — Flat, slight, being merely a few sticks or twigs placed cross-
wise— some arc more substantial, being built of green bianchlcts ;
usually situated on a horizontal branch of any tree, not uiifie(iuciitly
in mangroves overhanging water, and occasionally near the gi-ound or
on rocks. Sometimes three or four nests are situated in one tree.

E(j(jx. — Clutch, one invariably ; elliplieal in shape ; texture of shell
somewhat coarse, especially on the smaller end ; siuiace sUghtly

* No dimensions given.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 669

Sjlossv ; colour, p\ire white. Dimensions in inches (1) 1-7R x 1'24,
(2) l'7 X M8.

Oh.irn'fifioiix. — The Nutmeg Pigeon, with InifTv-whitc phimnge and
strongly contrasted black pinions, frequents the northern part of Aus-
tralia and some of the islands bcvond Tt is strictly arboreal in its
habits.

In the Port Darwin district, Gilbert observes that : " It pairs and
commences breeding immediately after its amval in (the beginning)
November. Tlie nest is formed of a few sticks laid across one another
in opposite directions, and is so slight a structure that the eggs may
usually be seen through the interstices from beneath, and it is so flat
that it appears wonderful how the eggs remain upon it when the branch
is waving about in the wind ; it is usually built on a horizontal brancli
of a mangrove, and it would seem that it prefers for this purpose a
branch overlianging water. That it never lays more than one egg.
appears to me without a doubt, for on visiting Tablchead River, on
the eastern side of the harbour of Port Essington, I found no less
than twenty nests, all of which contained either a single es-g or a single
young bird."

Mr. Kendall Broadbent's valuable testimony towards the life history
of this bird is that " Tlie Wliitc Nutmeg Pigeon (MyrinticivnTn
spiJiirrh'iri ). otherwise known as the Torres Strait Pigeon, a.mves at
Card well in September and departs in April. Its favourite breeding
haunts are among the islands, such as Mangrove Island, some few
miles down Hinchinbrook Channel, Brook Island, in Rockingham Bay,
the Family Group, Dunk Island, and North and South Barnard
Islands. They fly to and fro between the Bamards and the mainland
in flocks of hundreds, the distance travelled by some to their feeding
grounds away among the higher moimtains being thirty miles. On
many of the Rockingham Bay Islands they arc so numerous that their
cries drown all other sounds. In the early morning they leave for the
feeding grounds, but continue passing to and fro all through the day in
smaller or gi-eater numbers. The scrabs of the Murray, Tully, Herbert,
and other rivers, swann with these birds in day time, but at dusk are
deserted, the birds having then gone to the islands to pass the night.
At dawn and before sunset a constant stream of Pigeons to the ranges
in the first case, and from them in the second, may be seen on the
wing. On several occasions, when camped in the pilot cutter, anchored
between the Bamards, I observed hvmdreds of these birds fly on to
the rocks and walk to the water's edge as if to drink. I am unable to
say whether such was really the case, but it would perhaps repay a
local ornithologist to investigate the matter. This bird I have never
seen below the Herbert River, but it freqiients all the scrub coast
ranges north of that. Its habitat then stretches to the eastward, the
bird being found on the south east coast of New Guinea as far down
as Dinner Island, but it appears no further, as far as my acquaintance
with Teste Island, Bramble Haven, and other islands would indicate.
In these latter places the Nicobar Pigeon takes its place. I should say
the proper habitat, from September to March, is the coastal portion

6-0 NESTS AND EGGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

of Eastern Australia as far as the Herbert River ; and in winter the
south-east coast of New Guinea. It must be borne in mind, however,
that stragglers are not infrequently found beyond these limits."

During my own visit to Northern Queensland, 1885, on the Barnard
Islands, at daybreak on the morning of the 9tli September, we shot a
beautiful brace of Nutmeg Pigeons. Although we heard their loud
" coo " in different places, the Pigeons were difficult to sight in the
leafy coverts where they sought refuge. They were just beginning to
arrive from northern latitudes, probably the Papuan Islands. They
roosted on the islands at night, returning to the mainland to feed at
sunrise. We saw numbers of last season's nests.

Messrs. Le Souef and H. Barnard visited these islands late in the
season, November, 1891, during the full flood of birds. Mr. Le Souef
gives a very interesting account of them going to and from the main-
land. He says : — " We watched the Torres Strait Pigeons returning
from the mainland to roost. They came across to the islands in small
flocks, varying from half-a-dozen to twenty birds, there being a con-
tinuous flight for about an hour and a-half. The numljers that were
roosting on the island must have been many thousands, and when the
steamer's whistle was blown as it parsed by, a white cloud of birds
rose up, and as they settled again the dark-foliagcd trees looked as if
they were covered with large white flowers. It was a remarkable
sight, and worth coming a long way to see : the vegetation on the
island was full of Pigeons, and the cooing of so many birds was one
continuous sound. The male birds frequently made a curious chuckling
kind of noise, and also fought a good deal amongst themselves. . . .

" Tliey seem to build anywhere — high up in the trees, low down on
the vines, and occasionally on the I'ocks or in the bird-nest ferns
growing on the ground. The nests vary in size, from a light structure
composed of a few sticks, to large bidky ones built of twigs with the
green leaves left on. The only Pigeons that seem to remain on the
island during the day are the hen birds, which were either sitting or
attending to their young. We found eggs, one only in each nest, in
all stages of incubation, and also young birds. "

During another season, further north, on the Hope Islands,
Mr. Le Souef found hundreds busy hatching or rearing young, for very
few apparently lay on the mainland adjacent. A pair of eggs in the
Australian Museum was taken on Hope Island, 22nd October, 1860.
The 22nd October appears to be about their earliest date of laying.

Mr. Le Souef writes : — " Tlic principal bird on the island was the
Ton-cs Strait Pigeon, and they were nesting there in thousands, and
we got quite confused when going through the mangroves by the noise
the birds made flying ofi' their nests and away through the thick leaves
of the trees above, and we were glad to retiun to the beach out of
their immediate neighbovu'hood ; their nests were everywhere, and
all sizes, some only a few sticks, but by far the majority were much
more bulky, being composed of green twigs vrith the leaves left on ;
and on the Barnard and other islands, where I have found large
numbers of these birds nesting, I have noticed the same tiling, and
rarelv found a fragile nest as most other Pigeons build. We noticed

N£STS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 67 1

either one egg or one young one in each nest, and I have never yet
seen two, although I have looked carefully. There was the continual
uninterrupted cooing all day long all over the island, which would give
some idea of the great number of birds required to produce it. A few
of the eggs were fresh, but most were sat on, and sonic of the young
Pigeons were commencing to fly."

Referring to birds breeding on the mainland, in the " Records "
of the Australian iluscum it is stated that Mr. J. A. Boyd (Herbert
River) found these birds sometimes breeding in the open forests, and
has obtained young Pigeons miles from the coast.

Shooting parties sometimes go out from Townsville and other
coastal towns to enjoy an outing among these Pigeons. As the birds
are breeding, it is to be hoped that these excursions are not too
frequent, else these beautiful birds may be in danger of being too much
disturbed, and so quit their familiar abodes for ever.

Breeding sea.son November to January.

538. — LoPHOL^Mus ANT.vRCTicus, Shaw. — (458)
TOP-KNOT PIGEON.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 61.

Rfjerence. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 235.

Previous Description.': of Eggs. — North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 271
(1889) ; Campbell : I'roc. Roy. Soc, Victoria, vol. v., new
ser., p. 126 (1893).

Geographical I))s:trihution. — Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria
and Tasmania (casual).

Xext. — A platform of fairly stout twigs placed in a tall tree.
Dimensions. 8 to 10 inches across by about 3 inches in thickness.

J^flfl'^- — Clutch, one; elliptic<il in form, with sometimes the ends
peculiarly pointed, especially the smaller, which nips off suddenly ;
textiu-e of shell somewhat granular ; surface glossy ; colour, pearly-white.
Dimensions in inches: (1) 1-76 x 1-21. (1) 1-65 x M4. (3) 1-64 x"M6.

Observation.^. — The habitat of the Top-knot Pigeon is the coastal
sei-ub generally, from Cape York to the Gippsland Lakes, notwithstand-
ing some authorities persistently omit Victoria from its range.
Occasionally stragglers reach Tasmania.

It is a significant fact that altliough tliese grand Pigeons are plentiful
in some localities, the eggs are I'axe in collections. So numerous were
they one season (1890) in the neighbourhood of the Tweed River, that
one field observer states : — "Flocks of them, numbering thousands, could
be seen, during September, flying round at any time through the day from
the mountains to the coast and back." However, they are said to be
scarce in the Tropics.

6/2

NESTS AND EGGS OF .'\U ST HAL! AN B7RDS.

Tlicsc birds must breed somewhere in considerable numbers. Younc;
have been observed in the Bellenger River Sci-uhs in June ; while
Mr. W. T. Bailev observed a company of old birds nesting in a high
fig-tree in the Richmond River district. The nests were well out of
harm's way. Mr. S. W. Jackson in the same district found two nests
similarly situated at a height of 115 feet in some tall fig-trccs that stood
in a clearing, and was enabled to circumvent the fine birds by reaching
their nests with the aid of liis ingeniou-sly made rope ladder. As the
ladder only reached a.bout half way, it had to be drawn up and shot the
remaining distance — a very difficult, not to say dangerous, undertaking,
which occupied nearly the whole day to accomplish. An unfortiuiate
loss of time occun-ed on account of the second nest not being discovered
imtil frrrn firma was regained after the first nest was robbed, which
necessitated a second day's work. There was one egg in each nest.
One of these rare and historical specimens is now in my collection.
Date, 25th October, 1899.

The Top-knot Pigeon utters a. somewhat guttural double call,
resembling " Quook-quook."

Diu'ing my excui-sion to the Big Scnib, Richmond TJiver, my com-
panion and I visited a native tamarinrl-tree favoured bv Fruit Pigeons,
where the arrival of a number of large Topknot Pigeons caused us to
temporarily forget ovu" stiff necks, from " craning " upwards so long.
We discharged our guns with more or less success, and while the smoke
was yet hanging in the damp, humid atmosphere, I examined a hand-
some creature. The Top-knot Pigeon, side bv side with tlie Magnificent
or Purple-breasted, is about the same length, but the latter has the
advantage of b"ing slightlv heavier. The Top-knot is the possessor of
a splendid grey dress, darker on the upper siu-face, tips of wings and tail,
the latter being twice ban-ed. The head looks majestic, with eyes rich
orange, encircled with pink eyelids, and with a crowning brownish-coloured
top-knot cui'ling gi-acefuUy backward over the head. Feet large and
pink complete a fine figure about seventeen inches in length.

FAMILY—COLUMBTByE.

SuD-FAMiLY — Columbine.

539. — CoLUMB.\ LEUcoMF.LA. Tcmminck. — (45G)
WHITE-HEADED FRUIT PIGEON.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of ."Vustralia, fol., vol. v., pi. i;o.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 320.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — *Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. ii., p. 11^ (iS6i;) ; I,e .Souef : Victorian Naturalist
(l8q7).

Gengraphiral DiHrihution. — Queensland and New f?outli Wales.

" No dimensions given.

A'ESTS AND EGGS OT AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 673

XeaL—Thc usual flat and frail stnictiure of twigs, three or foiu- inches
across.

Eggs. — Clutch, one to two, but mostly one; elliptical in shape,
sharply nipped off at one end ; texture comparatively fine ; surface
glossy ; colour, white. Dimensions in inches : (1) 1-4 x -94. (2) 1-39 x -96.
A specimen from off wliich the pai-ent was shot, in the Clarence River
district, is much larger: TGS x 1-2 1.

0/>.s'cri-((//<r«.s-.— This fine and large, but somewhat local Fruit-eating
Pigeon, like the m.ajority of its kind, is .strictly arboreal, and is likewise
a denizen of the dense sciiibs from the Cai'dwell district in the north
to the Livei-pool Range in the south.

In the fonner district, Mr. Broadbent remai'ks : " The White-headed
Fiiiit Pigeon is not of veiy frequent occuiTcnce, but still may be pro-
cured at all times of the year. It is a bird which, till veiy recently,
was common in the Enoggera (Brisbane) Scnib, and is still so in Nerang
and other South Queensland districts. It is to be noted tliat the Card-
well bird of this species is not so fine in plumage, and is also somewhat
smaller than its Brisbane congener."

Gould described the nest and eggs, but furnished no dimensions of
the latter — possibly he described them by analogy.

Mr. A. Meston, in -wi-iting to the " Queenslander," says : " We found
(March 1st, 1889) nests at nine thousand feet on Bellenden-Ker of the
White-headed and Pheasant Pigeons, each with a single egg, in the
centre of the top of tall ferns about nine feet high."

It was not till 1897 that we really leaant anything about the egg
of the White-headed Fruit Pigeon. Diu-ing the visit of Mr. Le Souef
to the Bloomfield River, 1894, one of the black boys, named " Bamboo,"
in the service of Mr. Hislop, brought, on the 23rd November, an egg, said
to belong to this bird. ^\^len Mr. Le Souef re-visited the locaUty, two
seasons afterwards, another nest was found, from which the parent bird
was flushed. Tlie nest was built near the end of a branch of a scnib tree
overhanging a watercourse. Date, 28th November.

In the Richmond River district, November, 1891, late one evening
in some thick scrub, mth stinging trees not a few, my companion shot
from a verj- tall fig-tree a pair of " Baldies," as the locals called the White-
headed Pigeon. One fell near me, wliich I eagerly clutched, but was
surprised at its extreme tenderness; handfuls of feathers pealed off at
each con\'ulsivc straggle of the dying bird. In size and colour this Pigeon
resembles in a degree the familiar dark " Blue Rock," except the head
and neck and a portion of the breast, whicli are white. The usual
beautiful bronzy-pm-ple tints appear on the hackled feathers of the back
and neck. The light soon fades from its large, bright hazel eyes, and
the lovely pink-red tint of the bill assumes a duller hue. Its pink, scalv
feet are large and well adapted to cling to the branchlets while gathering
figs or other fruits.

At other times it was a common thing to hear from the dense reclusive
sci-ub their call of " booh-booh," the second " booh " being scarcely audible
except when the bird was near at hand
43

(574 ^ESTS AMD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Sub-family — Macropygiin^.

540. — Macropygia phasianei.la, Tcniminck. — (475)
PHEASANT PIGEON.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 75.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 349.

Previous Description of Eggs.- — North : Rec. Austn. Mus., vol. i.,
p. 117 (1S91).

Gengrnphical Dutrihutiaii. — Nortlicrn Ton-itoiy, Queensland, and
New South V.'ale.5.

Neit. — A primitive stioicture, being simply a few sticks placed cross-
wise, vrithout any cavity, and barely sufficient to retain the egg in
position (North).

A nest found in the Richmond River district was laj-ge for that of
a Pigeon, being six inches across, with a cavity about one inch deep,
while the whole was nine inches in depth ; but the foundation tapered
to a point, making the stiiictiu-e appear like an inverted triangle, which
was inserted in the topmost forked branches of a buoj'oiig (Tdrrirtia)
sapling, at a height of about thirty feet from the ground.

E(/(/if. — Clutch, one to two ; elliptical in shape, shai'ply nipped off at
one end ; texture of shell fine and brittle ; surface glossy ; colour, white,
with a faint creamy tone. Dimensions in inches of .single examples
(1) 1-.3G X -Ofi, (2) 1-33 X -90, (3) 1-38 x -97.

Ohxervationx. — This large, brownish Pigeon is a denizen of the
luxuriant coastal scrubs, where it is common in parts from the Gulf of
Carpentaria to New South Wales. I have shot them in the latter
locality.

It is a graceful bird, fifteen or sixteen inches in length, including an
elegant tail about half that dimension. The name Large-tailed or Brown
Pigeon adequately describes the bird., but there may be mentioned the
resplendent bronzy and purplish reflections on the feathei-s of the neck,
the pinkish eyes with grey circle next the pupil, and the red feet. The
birds are exceedingly tame. Sometimes I saw them on the road picking
up seeds, at other times perched on low br.iiichcs by the wayside ; but
towards the evening the birds were jilenfiful near my quarters, coming
out of the scnib to feed amongst the ink-weed ( Pliytdhiccd ). When
disturbed, half-a-dozen, with showy expanded tails, may be seen alighting
upon a single stump, where one may get at least a brace at a shot. At
the discharge they all fly off to the scrub, but soon reappear for the
tempting ben-ies of the plentiful ink-weed. The call of the Pheasant
Pigeon is a low, monotonous lone, twice repeated. They sometimes nest
in such suggestive places as tho centre of a bird's nest fern or in the crown
of a fi^rn-tree.

Q
Z

W

Q
Z

o

a;

Q

w

a,

o
1^

NESTS AND EGGS O? AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

675

Notwithstanding birds arc numerous, there are only a few authenti-
cated eggs known. Maybe; the birds, like some of the rai'er Fniit
Pigeons, seek a nesting place in the recliLse shade of the dense wilderness
of foliage', wlierc the finding of a nest is merely a matter of chance.

The fii'st authenticated egg of the Pheasant Pigeon was found by
Mr. H. R. Elvery, Richmond River, November, 1884, and is now in my
son's collection. But it was not described at the time, which gave
Mr. North the opportunity of first describing in the "Records" of the
Austi'aliau Museum another example found by Mr. W. J. Giime, in the
Tweed River scrub during the season 1890-91.

Mr. North remarks that " Young birds were obtained by
Messrs. Cairn and Grant in the sciiibs that clothe the sides of the Mus-
grave and Russell Rivers in tropical Queensland, during November, 1887.
Mr. Meston, in his Report of the Scientific Expedition to Bellenden-Ker,
in the near vicinity, records finding it breeding diu'ing Febiiiai-y, 1889,
on thei South Peak of the Range, at an elevation of from foiu- thousand to
five thousand feet, in tne tops of ti'ee-ferns, each nest containing a single
egg or young Pigeon.

" For an opportunity of examining an egg of this species I am
indebted to Mr. W. J. Grime, who, in the brushes of the Tweed River,
found a nest placed on a mass of lawyer vines (Calamus australis), about
six feet from the groimd, from which he flushed the bird."

The egg in my collection was taken near Rous, Richmond River, 19th
November, 1896, by Mr. W. T. Bailey. The following are the data
that accompanied the specimen : — " I took the egg of the Lai'ge-tailed
Pigeon. Tlie bird makes a large nest, somewhat flat on top, like those
of other Pigeons, but funnel-shaped, ranning downwards to a point.
I could not reach the nestj as it was built in the fork of three brandies,
at the top of a tall and slender sapling — too thin to climb. The tree
iiad to be felled and lowered piecemeal. When the nest was within
reach I introdi.eed my hand and could feel nothing, but on looking in
I saw the egg, which, by the jarring of the chopping, had worked its
way downward through the sticlcs into the neck of the funnel, so to speak,
where I ffot it all riafht."

FAMILY— PERTSTERTD^.

Sub-family — Geopeliin^.

541. — Geopelia humerai.is, Temminck. — (471)
BARRED-SHOULDERED DOVE.

Fi<;iire. — Gniild : Birds nf .\iislralia, fnl., vnl. v., pi. 72.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 4155.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — *Gilbert — Gould : Birds of Australia
(1848). also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 145 (1865); Campbell:
Victorian Naturalist (1888) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 27S
(iSSq).

Geographical Di-^frihufion. — Au.stralia, except South and Victoria;
also New Guinea.

• No dimensions given,

6-6 NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Nest.^A loose, light structure or platform, three or four inclies in
diameter, composed of twigs, portions of climbing plants, and sometimes
grass. Usually situated in a low tree or thick bush, in scnib.

Eggs. — Clutch, two ; roundish in shape ; texture of shell fine ;
surface glossy ; colour, pure white. Dimensions in inclies of a proper
clutch ; (1) 1-04 X -82, {'2) rO x "8 ; of a larger pair taken at Coomooboo-
laroo: (1) M5 x -91, (2) M4 x -86.

Ohservatinns. — Tliis gentle creatvire enjoys a goodly range throughout
Northern and the gi-eater part of Eastern Australia down to New South
Wales. I am not aware that it has ever been seen in Victoria, as
indicated on Gould's and on Ramsay's Tabular Lists. It prefers forested
and scrubby localities.

I hiv3 pleasant memories about the Baned-shouldered Doves, that
continually called loudly " coo^coo-coo-a " about our Cardwell camp.
The birds were numerous on the flats, feeding upon seeds, &c. 'We found
them delicious eating when ha.shed with sweet potatoes. We took a
nest containing two eggs, from which we flushed the brooding bird, in
a bushy tree near tlie beach. The nest was at a height of eiglit or ten
feet from the ground. Date, 4tli August, 1885.

Mr. A. J. North has described a set of eggs taken by the late
Mr. Geo. Barnard, Coomooboolaroo, Queensland, in 1883. I had the
pleasure of going through Mr. Bamnrd's collection two years after that
date, and even then, as far as I recollect, the species was not amongst
the eggs therein.

Eggs have been taken in Queensland as late in the season as 15th
April — between August and March is probably the principal breeding
season. However, Mr. Ltu ha.s taken eggs in July in Southern Queens-
1 md, where he found this Dove mostly in the open places between the
clumps of brigalow, eighteen miles to the west of Yandilla.

542 — Geopelia tranquilla, Gould. — (472 and 473)
G. 'plnr.ida, Gould.

GROUND DOVE.

Figure. — GouM : Birds of Australia, fol., vnl. v., pi. 73.

Referi'nce. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 456.

Prtviom Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsav : Proc. T.inn. .Snr., N.S.
Wales, vol. vii., p. 154 (18S2) ; Camplicll : Scuilliorii Science
Record (1SS3).

Gengni iiJiiifil Bhtrihnfltiiu — Wliole of Australia.

Neaf. — A small, slight platform, about two or three inches in diameter,
composed of twigs and rootlets, or just sufficient materials to ensure the
safety of the contents. Usually placed on a horizontal limb of a tree,
where branches or suckers shoot, often overhanging a stream.

NESTS AXD EGGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 677

£(/(/».— Clutch, two ; elliptical in shape ; texLuie of shell liuc ; surface
glossy; Loloui-, puie white. Dimeusious iu inches of a proper cluteli
iruni Qi.eeuslaiid ; (1) 87 x -61, (,2) -84 x -6. From Eiveriuii :
(i) -SSx-GT, (2) ■84X-G6.

Observations. — These delightful little Doves, well uamed Peaceful,
because so gentle and tanie, were also oiu- constant companions about
oiu- Cardwcll camp, feeding close to the tent or perching on the fence
behind.

It is now accepted by ornithologists that Gould's Peaceful Dove
(G. trannuilla) and Placid Dove (G. [jhicalaj are identical, the latter
being a northern and slightly smaller vai-iety. Therefore the
geographical range of tliis pretty Dove may be taken as tlu-oughout
Austraha. Of com'se the bird is more plentiful within the Tropics.

Close to the River MiuTay, one evening at dusk, I shot this Dove
accidentally, supposing it to bo another buxl. As I handled the dead
Dove, 1 could not sufficiently aduiirii its chaste colouring, whether the
grey, striated breast and barred back, or the rich bufi under parts of
the shoulders and general light uuder-sm-face, suffused with a deUcatc
piu-plish-brown, while a conspicuous patch of naked green skin sunoimded
the steel blue eyes. lotal length in the flesh, eight inches.

I suppose the breeding season of the Peaceful Dove may be any time
of ill J year. Tlu-ee nests I took in the Townsville district, one on the
18th, and two on the 22nd September, 1885, each containing a pair of
eggs, were situated in trees overhanging river beds. I know of other
nests that were taken in Apiil.

Mr. H. Lau writes : " The Small Dove (G. tranquil/a J is the pictm-e
of innocence amongst the whole of the feathered kingdom, and univer-
sally liked. Its home is everywhere on the Queensland Downs, but more
to where sandy soil is predominant ; but you rarely meet with its nest.
I heard of a squatter wno offered a blaekfellow a 200 lb. bag of floiu- for
a pair of young and could not get them. Such a nest I found at
Yandilla, 1865, and a second at Maidenhead, on the Severn River, New
South Wales, October, 1885 (or twenty yeai's afterwai-ds). The fii-st
was in a small cypress pine, and the second in a low fork of an apple tree
(AiiffophoraJ. Had the birds not flown from the spot I should never
have foimd either. Nest, fine dry grass. Eggs, a pair."

As a rule tlie Ground Dove does not build at a great height. The
following instance is an exceptional record by Mr. D. Le Souef, during
a visit to the Wimmera district, September, 1892 : " I searched in vain
for their (the Doves') tiny nests, but was at last rewarded by discovering
one on a bough of a dead tree about forty feet from the gi-ound."

Some persons say it is a misnomer to call this little bird the
" Peaceful " Dove, because when confined in cages, the males fight till
they peck each other bald.

6^8 NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

543. — GiiopELiA cuNEATA, Latliaiii. — (474)
LITTLE DOVE.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 74.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 462.

Previous Descriptions oj Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1S4S) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 147 (1865) ; Ramsay : Proc. Linn.
Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. vii., p. 54 (1882); North: Trans. Roy.
Soc, South Australia, vol. xxii., p. 1555 (iSyS).

Geoijrayhical Viatrihui'uMi. — Australia iu general.

Nest. — A small, frail flat structure, usually composed of dry grass,
including the flowering portions, and placed in the fork of a low or bushy
tree. One collected by Gilbert in Western Australia was composed of
a small species of knotty everlasting-like plant, and was placed on the
di'ooping gi'ass-lilce leaves of the Xuntlwrrhmu.

E(/gs. — Clutch, two ; roundish in shape ; texture of shell fine ;
surface glossy ; colour, white. Dimensions in inches of proper clutches :
A (1) -78 X -6, (2) -75 x -6 ; B (1) -70 x -61, (2) -72 x -59.

Ohscrvatiunn. — The Little or Turtle Dove — the least among the
Australian Pigeon family, — although nowhere plentiful, has been observed
throughout Australia, chiefly in the inland portions.

By reason of its gentle and tame nature, it is a general favourite with
the dwellers of the interior, and is prized as a cage bird, frequently being
exhibited at shows. It looks vei-y meek, with its cayenne-red colom'ed
eyes, surrounded by a naked ring of skin of the same colour.

Dr. Ramsay states that Mr. John S. Ramsay found the Little Dove
breeding in numbers at Cardington Station, on the Bell River. The
nests were placed on the flattened tops of the vine stakes in the vineyard,
and the birds were so tame that they would almost allow themselves to
be taken by hand.

During the Horn Scientific Expedition to the Interior, 1894,
Mr. G. A. Keartland's notes of the Little Dove were : " Many nests
containing young were foimd and appreciated by om- bl.-K'ks as good food.
Tlie sites selected for breeding were generally the debris in the low
shrubs near water, where the birds either hollowed the surface sligiitly
or added a few pieces of grass to keep the eggs from rolling off."

Mr. Keartland met this dear little Dove again breeding at the Fitzroy
River (North-west), where nests were found, containing eggs or young,
from January to the middle of March. The nest, a very frail structure,
is usually placed on the horizontal branch of a bauhinia-trcc, and
con.sisls of a few small twigs or grass-stems, so loosely thrown together
that the eggs may be seen from beneath, and so flat on top that it is
a didicult matter to bend the limb without causing the eggs to fall.

The Little Dove .sometimes breeds during winter; but the chief
breeding season is, no doubt, the spring and sinnimn- months.

kESTS AND EGOS OF AUSIKAUAiV BIRDS. 5^y

Sub-family — Puabin^.

544. — Chalcophaps chrysochloea, Waglcr. — (459 and 460;
C. lungirostris, Gould.

LITTLE GREEN PIGEON.

Eigun. — Gould: Birds of Australia, foi., vol. v., pi. 62.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit, ilus., vol. x.\i., p. 511.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist

(iSSS) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 27, and app. (1889) ; Le

Souef : Proc. Roy. Soc, Victoria, vol. vii., new ser., p. 24
(1895).

Geoijiaphical Distribution. — Noitliem Temtory, Queensland, New-
South Wales and Victoria ; also Lord Howe Island, New Hebrides, New
Caledonia, Ke Islands, Moluccas, Timor Group, &c.

Xtst. — A fratl, flat structure of twigs, placed iu a low tree.

E(j(j!<. — Clutch, two ; elliptical iu shape ; texture of shell fine,
except on the smaller end, which is slightly granular ; surface glossy ;
colour, light creamy-white, but darker iu tone than that of Ftilopus
sujjerbus. Dimetisious iu inches of proper clutches : A (1) 1-12 x -87,
(2; 1-05 X -84 ; B (1) Mix -Sj, (2) 1-OS x -87.

Obxervationx. — This lovely little Green Pigeon enjoys an Australian
habitat ranging throughout the Northern and Eastern parts.

Mr. Broadbent records he once found the bird in Victoria, feeding on
the fallen seeds of a black wattle (Acacia) scrub, in the vicinity of the
Watts River. It was again seen in the Dandenongs about 1882. A
bird presented to the Adelaide Museum by Mr. A. D. Macdonald, in
March, 1898, shot in the scrub on Yorke Peninsula, may have been an
escaped cage bird. If not, then " South Australia (accidental) " should
be added to the geograpliical distribution.

I first made its acquaintance in Northern Queensland (1885), where
it is fairly niunerous, and where we bagged several beautiful pairs. Again
I met it in the " Big Scrub," New South Wales. Here it was frequently
uodced flying quickly and low through the under scrub. Being of
terrestrial habits, it lives on fallen seeds and fruits. Its pretty plumage
is perfect, and readily described, with its rich cinnamon-coloiu'ed body
and resplendent metallic gi-een back and vrings, the latter being beauti-
fully ornamented by a small snow-white patch on each shoulder. Its
call is a melancholy bellowing sound, two or three times repeated.

Gould never met with the nest of the Little Green Pigeon, nor coidd
he obtain, either from the natives or settlers, any particulars respecting
its nidification. I had no better fortune diu-ing my Queensland trip.
At Coomooboolaroo I was evidently too early. However, at the end of
the season following my visit, one of Mr. Geo. Barnard's rehable black

^80 NESTS A\D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

boys brought in a pail' of eggs ou the 6th February, 1887. Kuowiug how
anxious i was to see the eggs, Mr. Baruai'd thoughtfully sent me one lor
examination. The rare specimen was duly described and exhibited at
the Field Natui-alists' Club of Victoinaj 8th August, the same year.

The following year Mr. A. J. North re-described the identical egg
without any reference to its having been previously described at the
Field Naturalists' Club ; and he a member of that club too !

Tlie following arc the interesting data of a perfect jjair of Little
Green Pigeon's eggs in my collection, taken by Mr. J. C. Gordon in the
"Big Scrub," New South Wales, 19th January, 1891: — "Nest built
on slender tree — so slender that it woidd not bear my weight. Tipped it
over till the eggs fell out, and caught thein as they tumbled."

According to the " Catalogue " of the British Museum, the northern
variety (C. loiiyirostrk, Gould^, has a longer bill, besides being a more
slenderly built bird than those, say, from New South Wales.

Mr. D. Le Souef remarked during one of his northern trips that tlic
Long-billed Green Pigeon was generally found on the gi'ound and near
streams in the shades of thick vegetation. On the 5tli November (1893),
he succeeded in fiudnig one nest containing a single e^g, securing the
parent bird. The nest was very slightly built, and not more than ten
feet from the gi'ound, near the end of a thin bough.

An egg of this variety in my collection, from the same locality,
measures 1-22 x -86 inches, and is lighter in colour than those of thcr
southern birds.

Breeding months, November to February or March.

545. — Phaps ciiALcui'TKUA, Latluun. — (462)
BRONZE-WINGED PIGEON.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australiii, fol., vol. v., i)l. 64.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 526.

Previous Descriplions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of .Australia (184X1 ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 1J4 (1S65) ; North: Austu. Mus.
Cat., p. 273 (18S9).

Geographical Distribution. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania.

Neat.- — ^A slight stracturc or platform of twigs, slightly concave and
about five inches in diameter. Usually placed in the fork of a hori-
zontal limb of a low tree, sometimes on a bushy branch or even on
a stump in forest, rarely on the gi'ound.

Eyija. — Clutch, two; roundi.sh or oval in shape; texture of shell line,
excepting the smaller end, which is slightly granular; surface glossy;
colour, piu'c white. Dimensions in inches of proper clulclies : (Roundisii)
(1) 1-23 X 1-03, (2) 1-27 x 1-0 ; (oval) (1) 1-3 x -94, (2) 1-24 x -92.

.VESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. oS I

Observations. — The beautiful Brouze-wing is uudoubtodly the best
known of its tribe in Australia, being found throughout the Continent,
also in Tasmania. But no doubt the seasons regulate its presence
in various locahties.

It was first called the Bronze-winged Pigeon in 1789, and is
weU named, on account of the resplendent feathers of lustrous
bronzy-green upon the wing. As a sterhng sportsman and uatiirahst
once remarked, " What a glorious bird does an old cock Bronze-wing
appear when seen perched upon the bare hmb of a gum-tree, with
bronze bvuTiished wings, chestnut head, and glossy breast reflected in
the rays of the evening sim I

As a boy I used to flush them from under the native cherry
(ExucarpusJ trees, feeding upon the fallen seeds in the forest under
Mount Cottcrell. Here we loved to watch their arrow flight through
the trees, and to hear the soft cooing note, especially in the mating
season, wafted from some secluded spot in the timber.

About 1870, the Bronze-winged Pigeon used to be very plentiful
about Oakleigh and the foot-hills of the Dandenongs, where I have
seen good bags taken, and where we frequently found their nests (on
one occasion with fledged young in July, proving that these Pigeons
wiU breed occasionally at any period of the year).

It is interesting to watch this fine bird in drought or thirsty
regions arriving at sundown at some favourite pool to drink.

On the " Habits of Birds coming to Water," Mr. H. W. Ford,
F.G.S., kindly favoured me vrith the following communication : — " The
Bronze-winged Pigeon flies witliin fifty yards of water and always walks
in — mostly at evening, but a few come in the morning. They walk
a few yards out from the water usually, and then fly away. The
Crested Pigeon (a creamy-grey bu'd, smaller than the Bronze-wing)
flies right in, mostly evening or afternoon, and drinks hke a horse,
for it never lifts its head, but sucks up the water. It remains about
water for some time before flying away."

In Southern Queensland, Mr. Hermann Lau writes : — " Although
frequently seen in the interior, the Bi-onze-wing Pigeon is only met
with in the little plains or meadows that intersperse the coastal scriibs,
where this handsome bird is mostly seen at the sheltered vegetation
amongst the sand dunes, close to the roaring billows of the Pacific*
Its nidification is not alone restricted to arborescent places, even in
the nook of a high rock have I seen its nest, and on one occasion
I was struck by observing the head of a Bronze-wing protruding out
of the nest of a Black Magpie (Gorcora.r). A more snug position
than between the mud-made walls the bird could not have chosen.
It was high in a tree, and I had to send my black guide higher in order
to ladle the two eggs out of the nest. Western Creek, October, 1874."
Refen-ing to Bronze-wings sometimes breeding upon the gi-ound,
in October, 1898, Mr. Herbert Fraser, Winbai-, Louth, New South

* There is a slight doubt in my mind whether this coastal bird mentioned by
Mr. Lau is not really the Brush Bronze-wing (/'. clegnns). but as Mr. Lau is a
keen and careful observer, he is entitled to the benefit of the doubt. (A. J. C.)

682 ^fESTs A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Wales, found a nest, which consisted of a few twigs plated under a
bush, containing a pair of eggs.

Like many other birds, the Bronze-wing will sometimes, wluu it
possesses young, endeavour to allure a person from the viciuily by
lluttering on the ground, just out of reach, feigning a broken limb.

The late Mr. H. W. Wheelwright stated, in his " Bush Wanderings,"
that while camped at Mordialloc he observed that by the end of
January young Bronze-wings were strong fliers, and large flocks of
Pigeons then congregated in favoiuitc localities previous to disjsersing
for the season. For about a month from that time a man who knew
just where to look for the birds could enjoy some " rattling sport."
The most Mr. Wheelwright ever killed in one day was eleven and a-half
brace. This was not an exceptional day's luck, for one season the
Pigeons were so numerous in the niontli of February in the banksia
and she-oak groves that he averaged with his own gun twenty-five brace
per week for that month. Ah ! but these were the palmy days of
olden times. I love old time memories. Here is another. Mr. Isa;ic
Batey (Siuibury), wiiting to " Tiie Australasian " on the birds of lus
cUstrict, relates the following incident about Bronze-wings: — "In 1863
something like a dozen pair of those birds appeared suddenly on our
property, established themselves in a nice low-bushed, scrubby ridge,
and when first seen by my people they were in the act of building their
nests. Of course they were highly pleased to see the birds settle down
so comfortably in their new home, and took, as they thought, eveiy
precaution for their preservation in keeping a bright look-out for
' vagrom' gunners and bird-nesting boys. All the eggs hatched, the
young birds progressed bravely, the old birds grew comparatively tame,
and everything went on finely, until one evil day when a drove of
Crowa pitched in the scinib. The young folks saw this swarm of black
marauders alight, and, for a short space, the idea that these rascals
would murder their pets did not occur to them. When it did, they
hurried off post haste to the rescue, but were too late, as they only
reached the nests in time to sec the Crows swallowing the last scraps
of the helpless fledgelings. Tiicy had killed evei-y one, and, if my
memory serves, the old birds, my people told me, at once left the
place."

Mr. H. W. Wheelwright recorded having taken a nest of the Bronze-
wing Pigeon when he was camped at Monli.Tlloc, Victoria, on dth
Februaiy, in the " fifties." Mr. G. A. KearLland, in the same niontli
(1889), shot a bird, which in its death agonies was delivered of an egg.
The general breeding months, however, are the spring and summer,
when, as Gould mentions, two or more broods are reared. About the
middle of April, 1898 (after a very dry season), a nest containing a
pair of egg.s of this Pigeon was observed near Kerang, Victoria.

NkSTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN blRD:i. Ggj

546. Ptt,\PS ELEGANS, Toiiiuiiuck. — (463)

BRUSH BRONZE-WINGED PIGEON.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 65.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 527.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould ; Birds of Australia (1848) ,

also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 126 (1S65); North; Austn. Mus.

Cat., p. 274 (iSSg).

Geographical Distrib-ution. — Australia iu general, Tasmania and
islands in Bass Strait.

Xiit. — Similar to that of the Common Bronzu-wiuged Pigeon — a
flat structure or platform of twigs. Usually placed in a thick bush,
on a fallen tree, or even on the ground, in secluded scrubby localities.

Effff.^. — Clutch, two ; elliptical in shape ; texture of shell fine, except-
ing the smaller end, wliich is slightly granular ; surface glossy ; colour,
pure white. Dimensions of a clutch: (1) 1-32 x -98, (2) 1-24 x -97.

Observations. — Tlie Brash Bronze-wing Pigeon is not quite such a
handsome bird as the common Bronze-wing, and has a habitat restric-
ted more to the southern part of Australia, especially coastal regions,
from east to west, including Tasmania and some of the islands in Bass
Strait.

The Bronze-wing loves the open and the forest, but the Brush
Bronze-wing is more shy and solitai-y, and, as its name indicates,
prefers scrubby situations and the growth about swampy places. I have
seen the birds and obtained their eggs in the Lejitospermum tracts
that gird the shores of Port PliilUp Bay, and also in the west iu the
short thick scrubs of King George's Soimd. In Western Austraha it
is fond of placing its nest in the fork of a gi'ass tree ( Xanthurrhcea).

Writing from Yorke Peninsula, South Australia, Mr. James G.
McDougall states he found the Bronze-wing a rare bird there, wliile
its Brush congener was common in the mallee scrub and melaleuca
swamps, and further, that the kangaroo hunters rear and sell the young
of the latter bird.

In Tasmania, Mr. A. E. Brent observes, the Brush Bronze-wing
usually seeks the sides of deep dark gullies for a nesting place, and
almost in every instance the shady side of the same.

Like the other Bronze-winged Pigeon, the Brush bird breeds
almost any time of the season, but usually during the months from
October to January.

The following are the dates of my finds: — 9th October, 1883,
Evandale, Tasmania; August, 1884, Mordialloc, Victoria; 9th Novem-
ber, 1886, Lilydale, Victoria ; 28th December, 1889, Torbay, W'estem
Austraha.

084 A/ESTS AND EGGS Oh AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

547. — HisTuiopHAPS HisTRioNicA, Gould. (464)

FLOCK PIGEON.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 66.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 52y.

Privious Descriptions of Eggs. — *Diggles ; Companion (Mould's Hand-
book, p. 2j (1877); 'Ramsay: I'roc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales,
vol. vii., p. 409 (18S2) ; North : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales,
vol. iii., 2nd ser., p. 148 (1888); D'Ombrain : Victorian
Naturalist (1891).

Gi-i}tjr(iphical Dutributioii. — North-west Australia, Northern Terri-
tory, Queensland, New South Wales, and South Austraha (interior).

Ntst. — The bare grottnd, under any convenient low covert — tussock
or bush — on the plains.

Eygs. — Clutch, two ; elliptical in form ; texture of shell tine but
strong; surface glossy; coloiu', wliite, with a slight creamy tone.
Dimensions in inches ; (1) 1-32 x -98, (2) 1-24 x -98.

Ohscrvuttunis. — This most beautifid and brilliant Bronze-wing, which
is strictly terrestrial, never alighting ujjon trees, is a dweller of the
great Central and Northern cli\asians of Australia, where dimng winter
it assembles in immense flocks, hence the name Flock Pigeon of the
dwellers of the interior. However, an informant writes ; " The
immense numbers of Flock Pigeons are never seen now, and the
birds seem to bo rajjidly becoming scarcer."!

The Flock Pigeon is short and plump, wears a brownish or cinna-
mon-coloured coat, and has black and white markings about the face,
therefore the bu'd may be easily recognised.

Gould first met this interesting Pigeon, as a new bird, on the 2nd
December, 1839, while camped on the Mokai River, in the interior of
New South Wales. He gives the following graphic pictiu'e : " 1 was
strolling down beside the stream at sunrise, when one of these birds
rose from the water's edge, flew to the distance of forty yards, and
again aUghted on the ground, where it assumed much of the air and
actions of a Sand Grouse ( Ptervch's). A fortnight after this I des-
cended about one hundred aud fifty miles down the Namoi, and while
traversuig the extcn.sivc plains, studded here and there with patches
of trees, that skirt the Nuiulawar Range, I was suddenly startled by an
immense flock of these birds ri.sing before me, and again alighting on
the ground at a short distance. Finding they would not admit of near

* No dimensions given.

t Regarding the alarming decrease of these exceedingly interesting I'igeons
from the downs and plains of North-west (,)iieensland, where the long grass
provides natural covert and aljinidance of food for them, IJr. W. Macgillivray
stales that the introducti(m of sheep and cattle {which not only prevent the
grass from seeding, but also disturb the birds and trample un their eggs and
young) is the principle cause of the great diminution in numbers which has
taken place of late years, only odd little lots of the I'igeons being now seen.

A'ESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIA A' BIRDS. 685

approach, I secreted myself, and desired my aboriginal companion.
Natty, to go round and turn the flock towards me. The whole simul-
taneously rose as before wth a loud burring noise, so closely packed
that had they not passed me at a considerable distance many must
have fallen to my shot; as it was I succeeded in obtaining four, two
of which were males. About a week afterwards, while returning from
a kangaroo hunt on a distant part of the same plain, we approached
a small group of myalls ( Acacia pcndula), and Natty suddenly called
out, ' Look ! massa ; ' in an instant the air before us seemed literally
filled with a dense mass of these birds, wliich had suddenly risen from
under the trees at liis exclamation. We had scarcely time to bring our
guns to the shoulder before they were seventy or eighty yards off.
Our united discharge, however, brought down eight additional speci-
mens, all of which, being merely winged, and fluttering about, attracted
the attention of oui- kangaroo dogs, and it was with the greatest
difficulty they could be prevented from tearing them to pieces. In the
midst of the scramble, a Kite, with the utmost audacity, came to the
attack, and would doubtless have carried off his share, had not
the contents of my second barrel stopped Ms career."

Leichliardt's Expedition (1847) noticed large flocks of these Pigeons
lying on the patches of burnt grass on the plains of Queensland.

1, have never seen any of the eggs of this Pigeon " pure white," as
described by Dr. Ramsay. They always have a faint creamy tone.

I cannot resist giving at length Mr. Price Fletcher's (" The Bush
Naturalist ") fascinating field observations, as they appeared in " Tlie
Quecnslander," 25th May, 1878, regai-ding the Flock Pigeon. He
writes : " I was camped one September day at a large water-hole about
one hundred miles north-west from the Cloncurry. About half-past
four thev began to come in from the plains ; being so used to flocks
of them, I at first paid no particular attention, but, getting up and
looking round, I was astonished to find that as far as the eye could
see in a north-westerly direction there was one continuous stream of
these birds, apparently making for this water. Settling on the edge
of the hole, I gave myself up to the pleasure of obser\'ing them. Tliese
Pigeons are most pecuhar drinkers. Most birds are very deliberate
over this matter, and even by their lifting up their heads heavenwards
seem to retmii thanks ; not so our vigorous Pigeon friends : they are
not at all reverential, but drink as though their very Hfe depended
upon doing so quickly — as if the water would dry up before they
could taste it. A flock, after flying several times swiftly round and
round the lagoon, suddenly swoops down at a convenient spot ;
plunging their beaks into the water up to the eyes, they give two or
three hasty gulps, and then suddenly, as if alanned, they rise up and
fly off again, before, I am siue, one-half have had time to touch the
water. After flying round in wide circles, they again repeat the
performance till, I suppose, at last, they do manage all to get satisfied.
I cannot help thinking that the peculiar manner the blacks have of
hunting them, and which I shall presently describe, has something to
do witli this strange method of drinking. At this hole, on this par-
ticular afternoon, they kept up these manoeuvres till sunset, and the

586 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

hundreds of thousands that had accumulated there (many flocks had
flown away satisfied) wa^ a sight that to the eyes of a naturalist was
delightful. It would take the pen of an Alexander Wilson to graphic-
ally describe the scene ; how, in spite of their really incredible numbers,
their closeness together, and their extreme rapidity of flight, yet not
one ever made a mistake and ' cannoned ' against its neighbour ; in
and out they glide, circle within circle, and each cii-clc counting
thousands ; all seem to be moved by one spirit of unity, and they
swoop and turn, rise and fall, as if directed by an invisible hand. The
roar from their wings, as a larger flock than usual rose, was really
deafening. The ducks paddled to the centre of the water, and the
herons and spoonbills sailed away to neighbom-ing trees, evidently
annoyed at tins noisy intenuption of their quiet habits. The sight
was one never to be forgotten ; it was a red-letter day among the many
such days that a ' bush naturalist ' can get in Queensland. Never but
this once has it been my good fortune to see such excessive numbers at
one time.

" Generally speaking, a water-hole is chosen for a favourite drinking
place that is free from much timber, with a good, firm, gradually
sloping ' shore ' to the water. Tliis gives plenty of room for their
eccenti-ic habits. I came across such a place one day, about fifty miles
from the scene just spoken of, and was surprised to find it as it were
planted all round with gum-tree branches. I could not at first make
it out at all : these bushes were stuck into the mud close to the
water, and were about the height and distance apart that gooseberry
bushes are usually grown. It did not require the footprints, quite
fresh, of blacks to let me know it was their work ; but I thought the
children had done it in their ' play about.' Seeing a nide sort of
gunyah at each end — the iiolc was about one hiuidrcd yards long —
I rode up, and then the mystery was explained by the heaps of Pigeons'
feathers lying about. I afterwards had the pleasure of watching the
blacks in this place catching them. It is thus : the blacks, well sup-
plied with light boomerangs, conceal themselves, one in each gimyah,
and wait patiently till the Pigeons come. They, with their u.sual
impetuosity, after some preliminary circling, swoop down to the water;
the little bushes confu.sc them, momentary disorganization ensues, they
try to rise again, but their unity of sjoirit is broken, and they are a
whizzing, buzzing mob of rabble. This is the time waited for by the
blacks, who, springing to their feet, with eyes dilated, muscles quiver-
ing with wild excitement and savage satisfaction, hurl boomerang after
boomerang into tlie seething mass before the a.stonislied Pigeons even
know that their arch-enemy is upon them. Tiie whole scene did not
take two minutes of time, and yet there lay dead or wounded some
four dozen birds.

" About December these large flocks break up into couples, and it
is not till after the breeding season that they again re-foi-m. My
opinion is that the couples are faithful partners, even for life, for
amongst the great flocks it is still often possible to detect the pair
keeping close together. They make no nest, but lay two white eggs
on the bare ground, well concealed uiiclcr a tussock of grass. Tliey sjl

?^ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 687

very close, and when roused up by a horseman only fly some twenty

or thirty yards and down again ; by this it is always possible to tell

if the bird has a nest, and the knowledge of this may enable a starving

man to get a feed of young Pigeons or eggs, and so perhaps save his

life. They have no voice except at pairing time, when during the early

night the delicate soft coo-coo of one to another, so suggestive as it

is of peace and love, is one of the pleasantest sounds that the traveller

sleeping out on these plains can hear : it is a happy refrain in one's

thouirhts of home and love. "
o

A keen observer of birds, who has lived in the Gulf Countiy since
1869, in reference to the blacks catching Flock Pigeons, mentions a
somewhat different method than that described by Mr. Fletcher. The
black, hiding in a bough-covered hole, has a net spread out, one side
of wliich is attached to a long spear-like stick, the net being whipped
over the birds as soon as they alight. Tlic black then jumps out,
bites the neck of each Pigeon, throwing them into the hole, gets back
into his liiding place with the net ready for the next flock, which are
treated similarly. In tliis way my infomiant states that he has seen
hundreds of birds caught.

Mr. W. H. L. Thornton, Queensland, in writing to " The Austral-
asian," remarks that from October to March (which includes the
breeding season) Flock Pigeons are silent birds. In June, 1866, when
lie took charge of Tower Hill Station, they were in countless numbers.
Twice he bagged forty-two at a shot. Mr. Thornton innocently adds,
that they left the district for over eight years, and accounted for their
absence by the country being stocked with sheep, whicli trample on
eggs and young. May not bags, forty-two at a shot, have something to
do with thcii- chsappearance also > A few birds returned in the season of
1897, but only remained a month or two. After fencing wire came
into the district, the blacks gave up the use of the boomerang for
killing the Pigeons, and used bits of iron about fifteen inches long.
The poor Pigeons learned to fly miles past water to go to a hole with
low banks, because the blacks could net or kill more easily with wire
and boomerang where the banks are steep.

The eggs in my collection were taken in North-west Queen,sland,
March, 1891, by Mr. A. S. Macgillivray. His brother (Dr. W.
Macgillivray) informs me that the eggs are usually laid towards the
termination or soon after the wet season, when the grass is long and
gi-een, and are deposited in a depres.sion in the bare ground under an
overhanging tussock of Mitchell gi-ass, the seeds of this grass fonning the
principal food of both old and young birds.

U.sual breeding months December to March.

Mr. A. J. North states the interesting fact of these splendid
Pigeons breeding in capti\-ity in the aviary of the late Hon. William
Macleay, of Elizabeth Bay. during 1887-8S.

But as against the field observations of such explorers as Stuart,
Fletcher, and others, jvho state the Hariequin Bronze-wing breeds in
summer after the rainy season, Mr. North says that " July and August
are the usual breeding season of this species." The fact that a set

688 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

in the Dobroyde collection was taken during July, 1868, hardly
I venture to state, proves his case.

548. — Petrophassa albipennis, Gould. — (470)
ROCK PIGEON.

Figure. — Gould : Bird;; of Australi;i, fol., vol. v., pi. 71.
Rejerence. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 5;io.

GeayrdiihicdJ JJisfri/iiifioii. — North west Australia.
Nest and Egg^. — Undcscribed.

Observations. — Gould, who described the rare Rock Pigeon, states :
" This highly singular species of Pigeon is an inhabitant of the most
rugged and sterile districts of the North-west coast of Australia.
Specimens were sent to nie bj' one of the officers of the ' Beagle,"
but, I regret to .say, were unaccompanied by any jinrticulars respecting
their history. Writing to me from the Victoria River, Mr. Elsey
states that it is common among the sandstone cUfls of the ranges.
The form of the wing would lead us to imagine that in many parts of
its cconomv this species much resembles those of the members of the
genus Genplinp.t : but on these points nothing can be ascertained with
certainty, until the productions of those remote parts of Australia
have been carefully investigated, a period which, from the inliospitable
character of the country, I fear, is far cUstant. '

Gould's predictions have so far, up to date, proved correct, because
absolutely nothing has been yet learned about the economy of the
Rock Pigeon. It is one of the three members of tlie Australian
Cdluwlnc, the eggs of which we are unacquainted with.

549. — Petrophassa rufipennis, CoUett.
CHESTNUT-QUILLED ROCK PIGEON.

Figure. — Proc. Zool. Soc, pi. 28 (1898).
Rcjereiue. — I'roc. Zool. Soc, p. 354 (1898).

Cii-(i(ir(i]>hir(i} Dixiriliiitiitn . — Northern Territory.

Nest and Eggs.- — -Undescribed.

Ohxirvatioiis. — This new variety of Rock Pigeon was discovered by
Dr. Dahl 19th June, 1895, on the South Alligator River, Northern
Territorv.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIA'DS. ggc)

As Professor CoUett says, it is easily distingiiislicd from P. alhi-
jjeniiis by its gi-eater size, by the chestniit primaries, by the pale-gi-ey
centres of the feathers of the head and by the whitish throat.

It inhabits in flocks the sandstone hills in the central position of
Amhem Land, and at times lies close amongst the stones.

550. — Geoph.^ps scripta, Temminck. — (465)
PAETRIDGE PIGEON.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 67.

Refereme. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 531.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — *Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. ii., p. 132 (1865) ; *Ramsay : Proc. Zool. .Soc, p. 116
(1S76); Campbell: Southern Science Record (1SS3) ; North:
.Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 275 (i88q).

Geograpliirnl Dhtrihiitinn. — Queensland, New South Wales, and
South (interior), and North-west ( ?) Australia.

Nest. — A little hollow, scooped in the gi'ound, about an inch deep,
and lined more or less with dead, soft grass, sometimes sheltered by
herbage.

Eygst. — Clutch, two ; stoiit ellipse in shape ; texture of shell
somewhat fine ; surface glo.ssy ; colour, white, vpith a sUglit creamy tone.
Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch : (1) r'23 x '96, (2) 1-18 x '93 ;
of another pair : (1) M9 x -9 ; (2) M8 x -94.

Obxervafioiis. — This peculiar form of Pigeon or Partridge Bronze Wing
is strictly ten-estrial in its habits, and is a dweller chiefly of the interior
parts of Eastern Australia.

It is an exceedingly plump bird, and for the delicious flavour of its
flesh is deemed equal to that of the far-famed Wonga^Wonga Pigeon.
In Gould's opinion it was second to none in any part of the world, and
he spoke witli authority.

The Squatter Pigeon, as it is generally called, may be observed on the
plains or open timbered countiy in pairs, or, as Gould more frequently
saw them, in small flocks of from four to six in number, which, when
approached, instead of seeking safety by flight, loin away rapidly and
crouch do%vn or " squat " (hence the vernacular name Squatter), either
on the bai'e plain or amongst scanty herbage, where they will almost
suffer themselves to be trodden upon before flying. Wlien they do rise,
it is with a shai-p burring sound of the wings. They either make for
another part of the plain or alight vipon a horizontal limb of the nearest
tree, where they steadfastly squat again until flushed or " potted."

I fear I was guilty of potting a few of these fine Pigeons at Coomoo-
boolaroo, Queensland, from whence, through the goodness of the late

*Nn dimensions are given with these descriptions.

44

Sqo

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Mr. George Barnard. I had previously received my first examples of eggs
of this species.

Professor Alfred Newton, Cambridge, has drawn my attention to
the statement made by Gould that " the young both ran and fly strongly
when they are only as large as a quail, as I satisfactorily ascertained by
kQIiug one which rose before me ; but at which bird I had fired I had not
the slightest conception imtil I picked it up." Gould's statement is
somewhat ambiguous and unsatisfactory, to say the least of it, and it
is with very gi-eat diffidence I have to qualify the statement of such
an eminent authority. It would indeed be remarkable were one of the
Pigeon tribe, after coming into down, to fly before fully feathered. I
wrote to the Messrs. Baniard for their field observations on the subject.
I'he following is Mr. Charles Barnard's reply : " I have noticed the passage
in Gould re young Pigeons that you refer to. I have seen them fly
when only the size of a large quail, but any person could see it was the
weak, uncertain flight of a young bird, and when they alight they will
allow themselves to' be picked up without attempting to escape. I do
not think they leave the nest until they are able to fly. " Mr. Harry
Barnard writes ; " The young Squatter Pigeons remain abotit a fortnight
in the nest, till they can fly short distances ; but they are easily caught
for some time after leaving the nest, as their flight is verj^ weak."
Further, Mr. Charles was good enough to foi-ward to me in spirits
a pair of these young Pigeons about a week old, taken from the nest.
Judging from their unfeatherod wings, it would have been impossible
for them to " fly strongly " at such an early age. Here is Mr. Barnard's
own memo., which accompanied the specimen : " The young Pigeons were
just about ai week old when I bottled them, the eggs were last seen on
Monday afternoon, 30th March (1896), and I bottled the young early
the following Monday."

There is another slight inaccuracy in Gould's notes. He states
the eggs are laid on the bare ground " without any nest." It may be
true in some instances, but the Messrs. Barnard inform me they have
frequentlv disturbed a pair of birds scratching out their little nesting
hollow, which they line with soft, dry grass.

The Partridge Pigeon breeds at almost any period of the year, but
usually from September or October to well into the autumn, the majority,
perhaps, laving in Januarv.

The following arc some of the recent flnta of clutches collected at
Coomooboolaroo': 14th August (1897), 22nd October (1804), 20lli Januai-v
(1896), 12th March (1896). The late Mr. George Baniard, witing to
me, 1887, stated that then (May or beginning of Jime) the blacks were
continually bringing in young of the Squatter Pigeons.

On the Darling Downs, Mr. Hermann Lau observed that the Part^
ridge Pigeon went earlv to its " nuptial arr.ingements." He has taken
eggs in AugiLst, and adds that the eggs often fall a prey to snakes and
iffuanas.

IVESTS AXD EGGS OF AV ST FA LI A A' BIRDS. 691

551. — Geophaps smithi, Jardine and Selby. — (466)
NAKED-EYED PARTRIDGE PIGEON.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 68.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 532.
Previous Descriflions of Eggs.—GoMld: Birds of Australia (1848),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 134 (1865).

G'eograjjhica! Dutrihitioi). — North-west Australi.T and Nortlieni
Territory.

Neai. — A slight hollow fonncd in a clump of grass (Gilbert).

Egg.^i — Clutch, two; coloiu-, gi-eenish-white (or white with a tone).
Dimensions iii inches : 1-25 x -88 (Gilbert).

Observations. — This splendid bird is the northern species of Partridge
Bronze Wing or Squatter Pigeon. For our knowledge of this pecidiar
Pigeon we are alone indebted to the reseaixhes of Gilbert, who found it
somewhat abundant in all parts of the Port Darwin district, where, how-
ever, its appearance was irregular.

Gilbert obsen-ed that the incubating months are from August to
October, but doubtless it breeds later on, perhaps at any time of the year.

The young, like those of the other species of this singular genus, are
hatched clothed with down, like a young quail.

552. — LoPHopH.vps piA'MiFERA, Gould. — (467)
PLUMED PIGEON.

Figure.- — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 6q.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi.. p. 533.

Previous Description of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
(1886).

Cleographical Disfributinn. — Northern Territory, Interiors of Queens-
land and South AustraUa (?).

Nest.- — A slight depression in the ground, sheltered by herbage —
spinifes, &c.

Effffs. — Clutch, two ; elliptical in shape ; texture of shell fine ;
surface glossy ; colour, light creamy-white. Dimensions in inches :
1-0 X -79.

Observations. — As Gould remarks, this genus of elegant little Crested
Pigeons is peculiar to the heated and arid plains of the gi-eat interior,
where the birds seem to delight in basking in the tremendous heat of the
sun. This Plumed Pigeon is the most northern variety.

692

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

The specimen Gilbert first shot must have appeared lovely in his
hands, its rich cinnamon-coloiu'ed plimiage, so beautifully relieved with
irides of bright orange, and the surroimding naked skin of bright crimson,
not to mention the bird's pretty crest and general contour.

The eggs I oi'iginally described were taken in the Gulf of Carpentaiia
country by my friend Mr. T. A. Gulliver.

This species probably lays at any period of the year, but the principal
breeding months, no doubt, include those from October to March.
Dr. W. Macgillivray, who has found these Pigeons plentiful in the
Cloncuriy Ranges, took eggs usually in October. They were placed on
the bare ground, under a spinifex tussock, on the seeds of which the
birds feed.

553. — LoPHOPHAPS FERRUGiNEA, Gould. (468)

RED PLUMED PIGEON.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, foL, supp. p] 68.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 5-^4.

Previous Descriplions of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
(1S87) ; North : Trans. Roy. Soc, South .Australia, vol. xxii.,
p. 155 (1898), also Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. xxiii.,
p. 382 (1898).

Geagraphical Disfrihutinn. — Interior of South, West, and North-
west Austraha.

NcRt. — A slight depression in the ground, about 3 inches across by
1 inch deep, lined with a few needles of spinifex gi-ass, and sheltered by
a low bush or bimch of spinifex, usually on sandstone ridges.

Eggs. — Clutch, two ; elhptical in shape ; texture of shell fine ; surface
glossy; colour, light creamy-white. Dimensions of a proper clutch:
(i; 102 X -73, (2) 1-0 x -74; of a pair from North-west Australia:
(1) 1-0 X -78, (2) •99X-76.

Ohservations. — The Interior and the West are the homes of this
.sprightly little species, which may be distinguished from its congeners
by the absence of the white band on the chest. Its iiist-coloured
plumage is decidedly protective, matching the red-coloured sand and
rocks of the bird's usual surroundings.

The meagre infonnation rogai-diiig this species was received by Gould
from the Messrs. Gregory Brothers, explorers, who stated that the eggs
arc generally laid dining the months of July and August. However,
my old friend and schoolfellow, Mr. Alfred Walker, manager
of Innamincka Station, Cooper's Creek, presented me with the
eggs of this little Pigeon, taken 20th October, 1886. The
nest was situated on a stony rise about ten paces from the
edge of the creek. On the opposite bank was one of tlie depots
of the ill-fated explorers, Burke and Wills, at a point of about six miles

.VESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTA'AL/A.V BIRDS. 6iJ3

up stream fi-om where Biu'ke perished. Such ai-e the data of the ih-st
eggs of this species described. So that there could be no confusion
between the Rust-coloiu-ed Pigeon and the White-belHed variety, I
showed Mr. Walker the plates of both as figiu-ed in Gould. He
unhesitatingly identified the fomicr species as the parent of the eggs
he founil. Probably he is open to correction, and the bird
was really the White-bellied variety (L. leucoyader) ; but I have
examined eggs of the North-west species f L. ferruyima), which are
absolutely luidistinguishable from L. leucuyaster, therefore my original
description may stand.

Mr. G. A. Keartland, from personal observations, writes ; " The
North-west pai-t of Australia appears to be the home of this species. In
habits and appearance at a distance they closely resemble L. hiinigustcr
of Central Australia. In some rocky countiy near Gorda Town we saw
these Pigeons for the first time. Several single birds were distm-bed
as wc passed the base of the hills, but soon afterwards large coveys, con-
sisting of about one hiuidied birds, passed from their feeding giouud to
the hiUs. At the homestead of Liverynga Station, I am infonned they
are very abundant in the hills close by, and are so tame that as many
as a dozen bu-ds may be seen under the verandah seeking shelter from the
hot sun, or chinking from a dish of water placed for their convenience.
They aie also plentiful near the Margaret and Gascoyne Rivers. They
deposit their two creamy-white eggs on the grovuid beneath the shade
of a spinifex tussock in a slight depression in the ground, in which a few
bits of grass ai'e collected. I am indebted to Mr. J. Hanis, of Fitzroy
River, for the clutch in the collection." These egg's were taken in
Februaiy or March (1897), and have been described by Mr. North as
" swollen ellipses in shape, and of a iinifonn pale cream-coloiu', the gi'ain
of the shell being vei^y fine, and its surface slightly glossy." Dimensions
in inches : (1) -94 x -77, (2) -9 x -77.

I knew of another pair of eggs, taken on tlie Minilga, Western
Australia, 1 2th September, while the birds themselves have been observed
as far south as the Champion Bay district.

Chief breeding season probably from October to March, but the birds
may lay at any period of the year.

554. LoPHOPHAPS LEUCOGASTEE, Gould.

WHITE-BELLIED PLUMED PIGEON.

figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., supp., pi. 69.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 535.

Previous Description of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.
Wales, vol. i., 2nd ser., p. 1095 (1S86).

Geoyraphical Diifrihiifinn. — Northern Territory, interior of Qvieens-
land (probably), and South Australia.

694

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Nest. — A slight hollow in the ground, with a few loose blades of grass
in or around, and sheltered by a tussock.

Eggs. — Clutch, two ; elUptical in shape ; texture of shell fine ; surface
glossy ; coloiu", light creamy-white. Dimensions in inches of a proper
clutch: (1) 1-05 X -8, (2) 1-03 X -81; of another pair: (1) 1-04 x -8,
(2) 1-03 X -8.

Observations. — The habitat of this extremely interesting species is
the great interior. Ihere has been confusion amongst us about the
vai'ieties of the httle, plump. Plumed Pigeons. After having examined
the fine series of these bu'ds in the Austi-aUan Museum, Mr. North says
he cannot but regai-d L. yluinifera and L. leucugaster as referable to the
one species. However, the point is by no means settled.

As little is known of tins small Pigeon, I quote at length
Mr. G. A. Keartland's field notes as they appeared iu the " Report of the
Horn Scientific Expedition to Central Australia," May and June, 1894 :
'■ At Crown Point, on the IStli May, Mr. Belt secured the first pair of
these bii'ds. They proved to be adults, and the female contained a well
developed egg in the oviduct. Subsequently I obtained them ui numbers
at Lawrie's Creek, Petermann Creek, Hermannbiu-g, and, iu fact, wlierc-
ever rocks and water existed, until we reached Crown Point on the retiuii
journey, on the 26th July. On several occasions they made a welcome
addition to oiu- table, where their beautiful white flesh was much
appreciated. Their love of rocky country has gained for them their
appellation of ' Rock Pigeons.' They are strictly ground birds, and
never perch on trees, but assembled in small companies on the I'ocky sides
of the gorges through wliich we passed, where they seemed to enjoy
basking in the hot sun. Owing to their colour they are not easily seen
on the red sand or rocks. They are easily approached, and when dis-
tui'bed rise with a ' whirr ' like a quail ; but as soon as they are well on
the wing, they gently glide away, giving a tempting shot. At Stokes'
Pass, Hugh Edgar, one of our camel drivers, found a nest, if such it might
be called, containuig two yoimg ones, neai'ly able to fly. 'iliey were
entirely brown, but others, probably a week older, were foimd, which had
developed the white and black on the tlu'oat and head, which were
invisible on the nestlings, as tlie feathers had not fonncd on those parts.
The birds lay their eggs on the^ ground, generally near a tussock of porcu-
pine grass, and place a few loose straws around, but in such a careless
manner that it scarcely deserves the name of nest. Subsequently, at
Haast's Bluff, Dr. Stirling fovmd several nests containing eggs or young
ones. There wei'e never more than two eggs, which are about onc-tliird
smaller than those of Uci//ihaps lophotex, and arc of a dull creamy-white
coloiu', with rather rough surface and buying the usual glossy suri'ace of
Pigeon eggs. I wa.s informed that these birds have never been foiuul
further south than Crown Point, on the Fiuke River."

The statement published by Dr. E. P. Ramsay, when first describing
the eggs of this rai-e interior bird, that it lays four eggs, must evidently
be an eiror. The Honi Expedition )iever obsei-ved more than two eggs
or two young to a nest. Moreover, tliere is no instance of any species
of Australian Pigeons laying more than a pair of eggs for a sitting.

NESTS A.\D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 695

t- ^^

Spcakiug of the genus generally, Gould says : " If we may judge from
analogy, we may also infer that the young of these little Ground Bronze-
wings do not reuiiiin callow and lielpless for any length of time, but like
the young of the Gall inacta generally, they are able to trip over the
groiuid soon after exclusion from the egg." I think I have proved that
GoiUd was mistaken about the young of the Geopliaps being able to fly
strongly when only the size of a quail. Likewise liis opinion is eiToneous
with reference to the young of the Lo])hophaps being able to run soon
aiter they are hatched. The young remain in the nest (merely a few
straws on the g^-ound), where they are fed by their pai'ents like ordinary
Pigeons for about three weeks. This fact I leamt from Mr. Adolph
Russell, a neighbour of mine, who had these sprightly httle Pigeons
breeding in captivity.

Mr. Keai'tland kindly loaned me for examination a pair of skins of
fledgelings of this Pliuued Pigeon, apparently a week or ten days old,
taken from the nest in Central Australia. Jvidging by the development
of the feathers, the birds were quite incapable of flying at that stage.

As pets, the White-bellied Plumed Pigeons arc very pugnacious,
readily attacking other birds in the aviaa-y.

555. — OcvPHAPS LOPHOTEs, Teinmiuck. — (469)
CRESTED PIGEON.

Figure. — Sould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 70.

Reference.— C3.\.. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 535.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 140 (1865) ; Ramsay : Proc. Linn.
Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. vii., p. 410 (1882) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 277, pi. 14, fig. 10 (1889).

Geographical Didributiuii. — Australia in general.

Nest. — A sUght, flat stioicture of twigs, usually placed in a bush —
polygonum, hakea, salt, &c. — or low tree, sometimes on a stump.

E(jgs. — Clutch, two ; elliptical in shape, sharply nipped off at one
end ; texture of shell fine ; sui'face glossy ; colour, pure white. Dimen-
sions in inches of a proper clutch : (1) 1-32 x -DS, (2) 1-29 x -93.

Ohservatium. — This beautifully shaped and extremely elegant Pigeon
is a dweller of open timbered parts inland throughout almost the whole
of Australia.

Wlien flushed it is a pleasant sight to see a small flock of Crested
Pigeons on whistling wings sail mto a dead tree, and there on the grey
limbs cluster theii- chastely-coloured figures into a pretty art pyramid.
Many times have I enjoyed looking at such hving pictures on the
MxuTay and Riveriua plains.

5g6 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

The whistling sound of the wings when the bird is flying is very
pecuhar, while the posing of some of the birds when perching is ex-
ceedingly odd, especially when they throw their tails into the air, an
effort wliich seemingly almost overbalances the birds.

The first recorded nest of tliis species was met with by Gould, who
found it in a low tree on the great plains on the Lower Nanioi, 23rd
December, 1839. The frail stick nest contained two eggs, from wliich
the discoverer took his original description.

So carelessly constructed are some Pigeous' nests that we hear of
a squab sometimes falling through and getting hanged in the twigs by
the neck till it is dead.

In the great North-west interior of Queensland, Mr. Price Fletcher
observes that there this pretty Pigeon generally breeds about six feet
from the ground, and so loosely is the nest put together that he has
frequently seen the eggs roll oft' when the sitting bird was flushed.

Although spring and siuiimer may be the chief breeding months
of the lovely Crested Pigeon, I suspect, Uke most of our native Pigeons,
it lays almost any time of the year.

Touching laying during the off season, ]\lr. G. H. Morton, Murray
Meadows, on 31st March, season 1894, found a nest of this species
containing two eggs on a .stump. On the 10th April following he
found another nest, also containing two eggs, built in a saltbush.

I have eggs of the Crested Pigeon from Mr. H. C. Burkitt, collected
at Cooper's Creek, 23rd March, 1887.

S UB-F AMI LY GEOTRyGONIN.a:.

556. — Leucosarcia picata, Latham. — (461)
WONGA-WONGA PIGEON.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 63.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxi., p. 607.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — *Ramsay : Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 116
(1S76); Campbell: Southern Science Record (1883); North:
Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 272 (1SS9).

Geoyraphical Distributiun. — Queensland, New South Wales, and
A^ictoria.

Next. — Very frail in structure, composed of sticks or twigs placed
on a horizontal branch of a tree at a height of from ten to twenty feet
above the groimd, in scrub or forest.

^mi"- — Clutch, two ; elliptical in shape, occasionally more pointed al
(jiic end ; texture of shell comparatively fine ; surface glossy ; colour,

* No dimensions given.

.VESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 5y;

pure white. Dimensious in inches of a proper ckitch : (1) i-53 x 1-07,
(2) 1-45 X M ; of au odd example : 1-5 x M.

Ubservatiom. — This splendid large Pigeou (specially prized by epi-
cures for the delicacy of its fine-flavoured flesh) is a denizen of eastern
forests and scrub, from Cardwell district, North Queensland, to
Victoria. Not many years ago I saw Wonga-Wongas in the Daude-
nongs, near Melbourne. As a rule it is a stationary species.

The greyish dappled plumage, relieved with pink feet and bill and
rich brown eyes, needs no fmther description. It is a good plump
bird, its body, when shot, averaging about a poimd weight. It loves
to dwell in the everlasting shades of the scrub, and seems always to be
on the ground feeding upon fallen fruits and berries. Along some
lonely and unfrequented track they may be flu.slied with loud flapping
noise of wings, and they usually afford a good shot by flying along
the track for a short distance before diverging into the sci-ub. Their
loud call-notes axe readily distinguished from all other Pigeons', being
a rapid, continuous, high-pitched " hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo," which may be
heard half-a-mile off.

The eggs I originally described were from the collection of
Dr. A. E. Cox, and were taken at Penrith, New South Wales.
Although tliis fine Pigeon is fairly numerous in certain locaUties, its
eggs seem to be rarely found.

From Mr. Lau's manuscript I glean : " In all scrubs — cedar,
myrtle, pine, or brigalow — the Wonga is surely to be met, living on
seeds of the undergi-owth as well as caterpillars (procession). Coming
to a virgin scrub, as I did, to the Highfield (Toowoomba Range), tliis
fine bird, of handsome plumage, and excellent for the table, appeared
very plentiful, so much so that duiing my stay of eleven months, I with
others must have shot a thousand. Here I found several nests — the
most scantily made of all Pigeons', and frequently crawling with dis-
gusting vermin, caterpillars, &c. The two eggs can be seen from
below tlirough the sticks. Tlie nest is situated from ten to twenty
feet from the ground, generally in the fork of a middle-sized tree.
Although I have obsei-ved two broods, I believe they have three.
Have formd nests in July and November."

Mr. Lau naively adds that civilization is fast diminishing the ranks
of the Wonga- Wonga Pigeons. I should say so, when he admits that
he and his companions alone shot over a thousand birds in eleven
months !

Chief breeding mouths October to Jaiiuai-y.

It ha.s also been found laying in the autumn season, while in the
Omeo district of Victoria, on the 1st July, 1897, when snow was upon
the ground, Mr. I. W. De Lany shot a female containing two nearly
developed eggs.

These bii-ds thrive well in an aviaiy, where they sometimes lay eggs,
but never sit upon them.

6g8 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ORDER— QALLIN/E: QAME=B1RD5.
Sub=order — Peristeropodes.

FAMILY— MEGAPODIID^ : MEGAPODES.

557.^LiPOA ocELLATA, Gould. — (477)
MALLEE FOWL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 78.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxii., p. 463.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs.— Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) i
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 163 (1S65) ; Bennett : Proc. Linn.
Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. viii., p. 1S3 (1883); Campbell:
Victorian Naturalist (1884), also Geelong Naturalist (1898);
North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 281 (1889) ; *Le Souef : Ibis,
p. 12 (1899).

Geographical Distribution. — New South Wales, Victoria, Soutli
aud West Australia.

Nest. — A large conical-.shaped heap or mound of sand, &c., covering
a bed of leaves and other vegetable debris about eight inches in thick-
ness; usually situated in a water track in the dense scrub of sandy
tracts, or in reddish ironstone gravel country, such as the Mallee
(so named from a species of dwarf eucalyptus which grows there), &c.
Dimensions, 10 to 12 feet in diameter at base, or a circumference 30 to
40 feet, and height 2 to 4 feet.

Eggs. — Clutch, twelve to eighteen— other authors seven to eight ; long
oval in shape or elhptically inclined ; texture coarse but shell exceedingly
tliin ; surface without gloss ; coloiu-, when first laid, hght-pink or pinkish-
buff, which on being scratched or removed shows a yellowish-buff ground ;
this in tiu'n, as incubation proceeds, cliips off in patches and reveals a
whitish shell. Dimensions in inches of four eggs from the same moimd :
(1) 3-73 X 2-35, (2) 3-7 x 2-42, (3) 3-52 x 2-2G, (4) 3-44 x 2-26. (Plate 18.)

Observations. — The mound-raising birds are the ornithological
curiosities not only of Australia but of the world.

This remarkable and truly sohtiiry Lipoa dwells in the chier and
more arid scrubs of Southern Australia generally, being particularly
partial to the Mallee (a dwarf species of eucalypt) tracts, hence the
vernacular title Mallee Hen.

The Lipoa resembles very much in shape and size a greyish-mottled
domestic Turkey, but is slightly smaller, more compact, and stouter
in the legs. It has no wattles about its head, but has a small tuft of
feathers falling gracefully back from the crown.

In Western Australia the Lipoa ha.s its most iiortlicrly range
apparently just above the tropical line, the Calvert Expedition having

* No dimensions given.

X

H

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. ggg

found evidences of the biid between Cue and Sepaiation Well, in the
Great Noxth-west Desert. Mr. Tom Carter obtained eggs from the
natives, gathered between Wooramel and the Mmxhison River. The
furthest point south touched by the Lipoa is, or rather was (for I fear
they have been driven out of the locaUty or destroyed by foxes), the
Brisbane Ranges between Bacchus Marsh and the You Yangs, Victoria.
At all events, the birds were there duiiug the season 1887,
Mr. A. Cameron, a station employe, having seen a nest, apparently
just ready for egg's. He also heard of a person who found another
nest containing eggs.

What a profovmd pity these wonderi'ul and most interesting birds
could not be properly preserved, because they are imdoubtedly fast
disappearing! I beUeve I have the record of the last eggs taken in
the unmediate neighbom-hood of Bendigo. That was the season of
1879. I saw eggs that were obtained from a mound in the Bagshot
forest. FoiTQerly the bii-ds were plentiful further north in the Whip-
stick scrub. During the Wliipstick iiish (1861) birds were exposed
for sale in the poulterers' shops in Bendigo.

The aboi-igines in the Benchgo district, which are now, hke the
bu-d, defunct, called the creatnre " Low-an-ee." Mr. F. R. Godfrey
recollects hearing the natives of the Lower Loddon call the bird
" Louan. " The great shire of Lowan, in the Wimmera district, derives
its title from the native name of the bird. In Western Australia the
Lipoa was first called by the trivial name " Native Pheasant," but is now
usually known by its native name " Ngow," or " Nau." Gould states
other Western tribes called the bii'd " Ngow-oo," and that this name is
given on account of the tuft on its head, " Ngoweer " signifying a tuft of
feathers.

Decidedly the most peculiar feature in the economy of the Lipoa,
or Mallee Hen, is that it does not incvibate its eggs in the usual
manner, but deposits them in a lai'ge mound of sand, where they are
liatched by the action of the sim's rays, together with the heat
engendered by the decomposing vegetation placed undemeath the sand
and eggs. In constructing a new nest or mound, a shght hollow,
usually a water track or shallow gully, is selected, in almost
impenetrable scrub. The spot is further hollowed or scooped out,
and filled with dead leaves and other vegetable matter. Then all is
completely enveloped with sand, which is scraped up for several yards
aroimd.

About the end of April or the beginning of May both birds (male

and female) commence to clear out theu' old mound or construct a

new one, which is then left open till June or July (the late Mr. K. H.

Bennett states October),* when leaves, &c., are gathered and placed

* I received a communication from Mr. K. H. Bennett, in which he writes: —
" The period of the nidification of the Mallee Hen appears to differ somewhat in
Victoria, for I have never known them here (Mossgeil, N.S.W.) to commence
constructing their nests earlier than the middle of September (more frequently in
October), whilst I have taken fresh eggs on several occasions from nests as late as
the middle of March. I think the difference in time may be accounted for by the
fact that the winters here are as a rule dry, the rain coming usually during the
months of September and October, but it mainly depends on the season. During
years of drought the birds do not nest at all, instinct apparently teaching them that
without rain the attempt would be a failure."

;00 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

therein. After the leaves are thoroughly saturated by the winter
raius, they are covered up with the sand. The fact that the mound
is usually situated in a shallow course or slight gully, further
insiu'es the vegetation becoming thoroughly soaked. The female com-
mences to lay in September, or usually October.

Two or three inches of dry loose sand are thrown over the leaves,
then a tier or layer of four eggs (Gould states eight) is deposited, each
placed perpendicularly on the smaller end. The four eggs are in the
form of a square, four or five inches apart. An inch or two more sand
covers them, and another tier of eggs is placed opposite tlie interstices
of the svib-tier, and so on, till the complement is reached, three or four
tiers amounting to between twelve and sixteen eggs. Mr. Charles
McLennan, who has enjoyed exceptional experiences with Mallee Hens'
mounds, tells me there are always four eggs in the bottom tier, but
sometimes six in the other tiers, except the topmost tier, which finishes
with one only, the number of tiers being usually three, occasionally
four. The centre or portion in the heart of the mound containing the
circle of eggs is about fourteen inches in diameter. One of Gould's
infoi-mants. Sir George Grey, who first mentioned the singular position
of the ngg, states: — "When an egg is to be deposited, the top of the
mound is laid open, and a hole scraped in its centre, to witliin two or
three inches of the bottom ( ? top) of the layer of dead leaves. The
egg is placed in the sand just at the edge of the hole, in a vertical
position, with the smaller end downwards. The sand is then thrown
in again, and the mound loft in its original form . When a

second egg is laid it is deposited in precisely the same plane as the first,
but at the opposite side of the hole, before alluded to. When a third
egg is laid it is placed in the same plane as the others, but, as it were,
at the tliird comer of a square. When the fourth egg is laid, it is
nt\\\ placed in the same plane, but in the fourth corner of the square,
the figure being of this fonn — o d ; the next foiu- eggs in succession
are placed in the interstices, hut alwai/s in f/ic same plane (?), so at
last there is a circle of eight eggs, with several inches of sand inter-
vening between each."*

In one mound opened by Sir George Grey, which, however, had been
previously robbed of several eggs, he found two eggs opposite each other
in the same plane, and a third egg four and a-half inches below them,
a circumstance which he says '' led me to imagine it was possible that
there might be sometimes successive circles of eggs in different planes."

Mr. P. R. Godfrey states : — " I have more than once seen a second
tier of eggs exactly above the lower, but this is a rare occmrence, and
sets one puzzling how the young birds that are first hatched, which
of coiu-sc occupy the lower stoiy, can get out of their prison without
disturbing those immediately above them.

During laying time an egg is deposited every third day. A great

* Since writing my observation'; on the Mallee lien, Dr. C. S. Ryan has
kindly showed me a photograph which he took of a mound partly opened,
exposing the top portions of eight eggs. They form an irregular circle, and
are apparently nearly all about the same plane. — (A.J.C.)

NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTRALIAN BIRDS. 70 1

amount of toil devolves upon the hen, assisted by her mate, because
they have to dismantle and rebuild a large portion of the mound
at the laying of each egg. A mound containing eggs is always left
conical shaped in dull or wet weather, but ni warm sunny days the
top is somewhat hollowed like a miniature extinct volcano, which
enables the heat from the sun's rays to concentrate and penetrate the
centre among the eggs, therefore when covered up by the owners before
sundown, the heat so absorbed is retained for a lengthened period.
Mr. C. McLennan says : " I have been taking particular notice of
them (Malice Hens), for I love to watch them at work. Tliey have a
habit of flattening out their nest about 10 o'clock a.m., in order to admit
the heat of the sun, and about 3 p.m. they build the mound up again."
He never saw more than a pair of birds (male and female) working
at the nest.

In building and razing the mounds the birds use their strong feet
for scraping, but tlie loose sand is swept up and impelled forward by
the aid of the breast and wings.

The eggs, which are laid between 9 and 10 o'clock in the morning
(not at day -break, as stated by one writer), are placed in their
perpendicular position by the parent by the aid of its feet, scraping up
the sand first on one side, then the other. From the position of the
eggs, and as a natural consequence, the chicks are hatched in an
upright attitude, their legs drawn up in front, and toes near their
beak ; therefore, it may seem an easy matter when the young are
delivered from the shell to wriggle through the limning sand, and so
free themselves from this great earthen womb. It need no longer be
a disputed point whether or not the young are assisted out by their
parents.

Sir George Grey (in Gould) states, from infonnation most probably
received from the blacks, that " the yoimg one scratches its way out
alone ; the mother does not assist it. Tliey visually come out one at
a time ; occasionally a pair appear together. The mother, who is
feeding in the scrub in the vicinity, hears its call and rans to it. She
then takes care of the young one as a domestic hen does of its chick.
When the young are all hatched, the mother is accompanied by eight
or ten young ones, who remain with her until tliey are more than
half-gi-own." The last part of this statement is questionable. The
young can fly from their birth, and probably lead an existence inde-
pendent of their parents. Mr. Bennett, from careful observations,
entertained the belief that the yoimg Mallee Hen can hberate itself
from the mound, mentioning that on many occasions, when opening
mounds, he has found the chick so near the surface that in a few
minutes more it would have effected its escape unaided. Mr. Bennett
argues if the chicks by their own exertions could come up from the
lower layer to where he had unearthed them, they could certainly have
passed through the few inches of loose sand near the top.

Further, the following is conclusive evidence, I think, that the
Lipoa chick does liberate itself from the hatching mound. In answer
to a direct question of mine, ilr. Charles McLennan, who has had

■J02 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

twenty odd years' experience, trapping, &c., in the Mallee, replies :
" There is no doubt that the young ones can get out themselves, for
when I was standing near a mound one day I saw a young one come
up through the sand, and I have found them very near the top of the
mound.' Subsequently, Mr. McLennan wi-ote : " I have seen a good
many young birds work their way out of the mound lately. "

By way of experiment, Mr. Dudley Le Souef had a piece of wire
netting placed round a mound that contained eggs. Result : none of
the young emerged, but died in their shells. This may seem to prove
that the parents must assist tlie young out. Tliey probably do so
indirectly by visiting the mound occasionally and working at it, thus
keeping the soil loose and friable. In the case of the mound wired-in
by Mr. Le Souef, the sand had evidently become set or hardened for
want of attention, and thus prevented the escape of the young at the
proper time.

With regard to the birds frequently visiting the egg mound to
repair damages, &c., Mr. Bennett states: — "I may mention that on
one occasion I opened a nest about 10 o'clock in the moniing, which
contained three eggs. I took one, as I knew from its dehcate colour
that it was quite fresh. I left the nest open, and having occasion to
repass it about two hours afterwards, I foimd the bu-d had in my
absence made it up again. Thinking it might be possible that the egg
I had taken was not the morning's laying, I again opened the nest,
bvit there were the two eggs only. This time I opened the mound
to a much greater extent, drawing the sand back to a considerable
distance and again leaving it open. Shortly before sundown I retvirned
to the nest again and foimd all damage repaired."

As previously mentioned, the laying season usually commences
about the beginning of September, and extends through the two
following months, consequently, as the female approaches the comple-
ment of her eggs, in the one mound eggs are found in various stages
of incubation. The dvu-ation of the period of incubation has not yet
been determined. I have hazarded the opinion that it is probably
about six weeks (some obsei-vers say five),* for the following reasons : —
First, my brother, Mr. W. R. G. Campbell, during his residence in the
Mallee country, observed a mound containing thirteen eggs and newly-
hatched chicks. Now, as the bird lays two eggs a week (or one every
third or fourth day), that would give about six weeks from the time
the first egg was laid until the first appearance of yovuig. Second, as
some of the later laying birds finish their clutch about the end of
November, the last of the young has been observed emerging from
mounds about the middle of Januaiy.

We have accepted the usual breeding time of the Mallee Hen^
from September to Januai7, under normal conditions, but, as
Mr. Bennett has pointed out, the laying period is regulated by the

* Since writing this statement, Mr. M. McLennan, at my suggestion, made the
satisfactory observations that a fresh egg, marked on the 2nd October (i8g8), was
hatched on or about the 12th November, or 41 days afterwards ; and another egg,
marked on 4th November, he found hatched on the 12th December, or 38 days
afterwards.

EGG MOUND OF SCRUB HEM (MEGAPODE)
From a I'hoto by D. Lc Sou'tf.

EGG MOUND OF MAI. LEE UE.N, ul'EXED UV blKD.
Fiom a Photo by D Le Souif,

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRAL! AN BIRDS. 703

character of the season or rains. T believe eggs have been taken in
New Sout}i Wales in Jiily.

Gilbert, in the Wongan Hills, Western Australia, took the first
Mallec Hens he ever found on the 28th September (1842). Mr. T.
Carter, further north, on the Miu'chison, has seen eggs in the hands
of the natives 20th September. The season (1884) I visited the Mallee,
in Victoria, laying commenced also in September. The season of 1888
another collector watched eighteen Mallee Hen mounds, and none
contained an egg before the middle of October. Then again, taking
the terminal end of the laying season, and still in the same district
(Wimmera), Mr. A. Esdaile, about the 27th March, 1887, found yoimg
birds just emerging from the shell ; and later still, Mr. E. H. Hill,
\vriting from Bendigo, luider date 19th May, 1895, says: "A pair of
Mallee Hen's eggs was Isrouglit to the School of ilines from Boort,
said to have been taken from the mound last Sunday. I blew them
myself, and one was perfectly fresh, though the other was addled."

Toucliing the complement of eggs to a mound, Gilbert stated that
Mr. Roe, the Surveyor-General, who examined several mounds dimng
his expedition to the interior, 1836, found the eggs nearly ready to
hatch in November, and invariably seven or eight in niunber, while
another authority informed him of an instance of fourteen being taken
from one mound. Sk George Grey, also mentioned by Gould, says
eight to ten eggs axe laid, and if the mound is robbed, the female will
lay again in the same nest, but will only lay the full number of eggs
twice in a season. My brother, already mentioned, found thirteen
eggs, some just hatched, in one instance. On one occasion, in the
Mallee (Victoria), Mr. Charles McLennan states he found the extra-
ordinary number of twenty eggs in a mound at one time, but, he adds,
five of them were stale. Mr. James Macdougall, writing from Yorke
Peninsula, South Australia, states : — " The Mallee Hen breeds on the
northern part of the foot of the Peninsula, where the mallee is tall,
dense, and almost impenetrable to man. I was fortimate to meet a
fanner, November, 1885, with a dozen eggs, which he had just obtained
from a mound." By far the finest lot I ever saw from the one mound
was eighteen in the collection of Mr. W. White, Reedbeds, South
Austraha. They were all the " pink of perfection," and apparently
taken as they were deposited. Tlie measurements varied from 3-68 to
3-36 X 2-38 to 2-27 inches.

Mr. Dudley Le Souef informs me that the Mallee Hen will thrive
in confinement, but does not as a rule attempt to make a moimd.

There is nothing hke personal experience, and as the Mallee Hen
is so replete with fascinating interest, even at the risk of being tedious,
I here give a brief account, the substance of which I read before the
Field NaturaHsts' Club of Victoria, 8th December, 1884, of a day's
outing enjoyed in virgin mallee scriib of the Wimmera district of
Victoria, when I was in quest of the Hen's eggs.

On the 22nd October, 1884, accompanied by a friend, I set out from
Nhill for the Lawloit Range, distant about ten miles. We took our
departui-e immediately after breakfast. It was a most deUghtful
spring morning, clear and balmy. Men-ily did our pretty pair of

704 NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

mouse-coloured ponies bowl us along the liigh road towards the South
Australian border ; now passing through lovely open timbered country
clothed with gi-ass up to the cattle's knees ; then, where the timber had
been reclaimed, there were acres upon acres of waving conifiolds,
which, judging 'by theii- rich gi-cen colour, betokened a bountiful
harvest.

En mute, by previous agreement, we picked up an industrious
selector, who formed his first acquaintance with the Mallee country
and Mallee Hens some twenty years before. He was to be our guide,
and a very able one he proved.

After crossing fine pine ridges, then a " crab-hole flat," we entered
the mallee on the Lawloit Range. To call it a range is a misnomer,
for it is merely a series of undulating rises or ridges of a reddish
gravelly ironstone fonnation, and almost waterless, covered with a
small variety of mallee f EucaJyptux gracilis) and other scrubs, notably
melaleuca, &c. It was a most beautiful sight from the bugg\' seat to
gaze on the face of this perfect sea of foliage, with here and there
patches of lovely malice blossom (prematurely blown by ciTatic season- —
it generally blooms in May), appearing like curling wave crests, while
in the troughs we saw the melaleuca (M . wilsnni ) all ablaze with rich
magenta flowers. Such is the home of the curious Mallee Fowl.

Having secured the ponies, we dashed into the scrub, our selector
friend leading, threading the bushes like a blackfellow, parting the
bushes first with one arm and then the other. I followed suit as well
as I could, but I soon found that " familiarity breeds contempt," and
much poetry, for me at all events, was knocked out of the scrub when,
in my enthusiasm, I came in contact with prickly bushes — hakea. —
and another ugly variety, which caused me to part with fragments of
my clothing, and even my flesh. My other friend took matters more
easily, cndeavom-ing to shoot a small species of Honeyeater, which
abounded hereabouts, for identification. It proved to be the Wattle-
cheeked fPfilotix rrfititia. Gould).

Running down a small water track, we stinirk a Lipoa or Malice
Hen's mound. It was situated between a clump of mallee and among
some melaleuca bushes (M. iinornnffi ). The sand}' soil was swept up
cleanly for yards around, even to the uncovering of the roots of the
scrub for two or three inches. Some conception may be formed of
the size of the mound when the dimensions, by actual tape measure-
ment, were ten feet across by a1x)ut two feet in height, or thirtj' feet
in circumference, the whole mound being equivalent to a displacement
of about one hundred and fifty cubic feet. The apex of the mound
was slightly concave, with a few twigs and sticks thrown across it,
evidently by the bird, to obscure detection. Sticks on the nest are
always a sign that the bird has begun to laj'.

We commenced to scrape, on all fours, like so many dogs. The
sand was dark-grey, intermixed with minute fragments of dead malice
and other foliage. Tliis mixture was exceedingly loose, and we
experienced no little difficulty in preventing it running back again
towards the centre. The mound unfortunately contained only one
egg. The temperature of the .sand about this egg, by F.ihrenheit's

^'ESrS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 705

thermometer, indicated d3°-, being 20° hotter than the surrounding
atmosphere. The mound had apparently been robbed two or three
daj-s previously. Our selector friend had, three weeks earlier, abstrac-
ted fom- eggs from it, making the tliird successive season he had
collected eggs from the same mound.

After " beating about the bush " a second nest was discovered.
Upon digging laboriously to its centre, we found revealed " nothing but
leaves." In a third moimd we were more successful. It contained
five eggs, fresh and beautiful. Its situation was similar to the first,
being in a slight indentation or gully on the side of a rise, and its
shape and dinumsions were also much on an equality. In removing
the sand, gi-cat caution had to be exercised for fear of fractm-ing the
shells, which are extremely fragile. It became intensely interesting,
after gi-ubbing away apace, to see the beautiful pink roimded apices
of the eggs peep out one by one above the dry and trickUng sand.
The safest method to remove an egg is to displace the sand imme-
diately round and about it till it gently overbalances. After removing
about a foot of sand, we came upon one egg, evidently the commence-
ment of a second tier, for directly imdemeath was the first tier of four
eggs. Tlien four inches of dry sand intervened, succeeded by a bed
about eight inches deep, of damp, humid leaves. A most unfortimate
accident happened to my thermometer, which was smashed through
coming into contact with sonic scrub. This was much to be regi'etted,
because I had no means of recording the temperature of the egg chamber
as a check against that in the first egg mound.

The eggs were as usual of immense proportions (3f x 2§ inches)
compared with the size of the parent. The colour of the eggs differs,
from a most beautiful soft pinkish-blush to a darker colour of rich
pinkish-red, and, as incubation proceeds, the eggs become stained and
discoloured. When fresh, the eggs are excellent eating ; to this I bear
testimony, having had one fried for a breakfast. It was exceedingly
palatable, being rich and delicate, and not even as strongly flavoured
as a domestic Turkey's egg. Before being cooked it turned the scales
at six and a-half ounces.

We got a glimpse of one bird as it ran along a survey line. They
are solitary and shy creatures. Persons who have heard its note say
it is most moiu-nful, sounding something like that of the Bronze-wing
Pigeon, but of course louder and more prolonged. The call may be
heard nearly a mile away. To produce the noise the bird has a
peculiar habit of placing its head between its legs, with the back of
the head almost touching the groiuid.

Its food consists of insects, seeds, and bcnies, and tender shoots of
plants. It can subsist without water, but sometimes drinks when it
rains.

Another himt after Mallee Hens occurred on the 25th October,
when we again visited the Lawloit Range, but many miles to the
northward of oiu- previous operations. We procured only two addi-
tional eggs, the birds as usual keeping out of sight. Nevertheless we
had an enjoyable scramble through the scrub. When evening came
we erected a comfortable mia-mia on the mallee fringe. Selecting a
45

7o6 NESrS A^'D eggs of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

triangular clump of these trees, we slung our hammocks between the
intervening stems and barricaded with thick boughs the two exposed
sides, while on the third side we built a huge fire. After the bugg>'
was drawn up and the horse secured, we were all safe and snug for
the night.

In Western AustraUa I had the opportunity of examining two
Lipoa egg mounds, one of wliich appeared to be deserted, notwith-
standing it was the laying season. One in particular was very interesting,
from the fact that it had been scooped out preparatory to receiving
the eggs. Tliis mound was not in mallee. but in a scrub of a mixed
nature, near Geographe Bay. The whole mound resembled an inverted
cone, or miniature crater, and measured about forty feet in circum-
ference at the base ; the rim of the crater, so to speak, being about
twenty feet round. A pei-pendicular line from the level of the rim to
the inside bottom was three feet, including one foot below the surface
of the gi-oimd. Unfortunately, some time previous to my visit, the
poor hen bird was accidentally caught in a wallaby trap and killed,
which accounted for the unfinished state of the mound, and also pi-oves
the theory I hold (in opposition to many intelligent observers of oiu'
mallee blocks) that only one pair of birds frequents the same mound ;
or else, if more, why did the depositing of eggs not proceed, seeing it
was full season or near the middle of November?

To conclude, I may give good Gilbert's original and uiteresting
nesting account (omitting one or two speculative eiTors) of the Malice
Hen in Western Australia, as it appeared in Gould, and dated from
the Wongan Hills, 28th September 1842: — "This moiTiing I had the
good fortune to penetrate into the dense thicket I had been so long
anxious to Adsit in search of the Lipoa's eggs, and had not proceeded
far when the native who was with me told me to keep ai^ood look-out,
as we were among the ' Ngou-oo ' hillocks ; and in half-an-hour after
we found one, around which tlie bush was so thick that we were almost
nmning over it before seeing it. So an.xious was I to see the hidden
treasures within that in my haste I tluxw aside the blackfellow and
began scraping off the upper part of the moimd. This did not at all
please him, and he became very indignant, and at the same time
making me understand ' that as I had never seen this nest before,
I had better trust to him to get out the eggs, or I should in my haste
and impatience certainly break them.' I therefore let him have his
own way, and he began scraping off the earth very carefully from the
centre, throwing it over the side, so the mound very soon presented
the appearance of a large basin. About two feet in depth of earth
was in this way thrown off when the large ends of two eggs met my
anxious gaze. Both these eggs were resting on their smaller apex, and
the earth around them had to be very carefully removed to avoid
breaking the shell, which is extremely fragile when first exposed to
the atmosphere. About one hundred yards from this first mound we
came upon a second, rather larger, of the same external form and
appearance ; it contained three eggs. Although we saw seven or eight
mounds, only these two contained eggs ; we were loo earlv ; a week
later and we should doubtless have found more. To give you an idea

XESTS AAV EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 707

of the place these birds choose for their remarkable mode of rearing
theu- youug, I will describe it as nearly ;is I c;ui : — The Wongan Hills
are about 1,300 feet above the level of the sea, in a norlh-uorth-east
direction from Drummond's house, in the Toodyay. Theii- sides are
thickly clothed with a dense forest of Eucalypti; and at their base
is a tliicket. extending for several miles, of upright growing and thick
bushy plants, so high in most pai-ts that we could not see over their
tops, and so dense that if we separated only for a few yards we were
obliged to ' cooey to prevent oiu- straying from each other. This
thicket is again shadowed by a very curious species of dwarf Eucalyptus
bearing yellow blossoms, and growing from fifteen to thirty feet in
height, kno\vn to the natives as spear-wood, and of which they make
thck spears, digging-slicks, dowaks, &c. Tlie whole formation is a fine
reddish ironstone gi'avel, and tliis the Lipoa scratches up from several
vards around and thus forms its mound, to be aftenvards converted
into a hot-bed for the reproduction of its offspring. The interior of
the mound is composed of the finer particles of gravel mixed with
vegetable matter, the feiinentation of which produces a warmth
sufficient for the piu-pose of hatching. Mr. Drammond, who has been
for years ax^customed to hot-beds in England, gave it as his opinion
that the heat aroimd the eggs was about 89°. In both the nests with
eggs the white ant was veiy numerous, making its little covered
galleries around and attached to the shell. One of the eggs I have
preserved shows the white ant's tracks most beautifully. The largest
mound I saw, and which appeared as if in a state of preparation for
eggs, measui-ed forty-five feet in circumference, and if rounded in pro-
portion on the top would have been fully five feet in height.
I remarked in all the moimds not ready for the reception of eggs the
inside or vegetable portion was always wet and cold. In both cases
where I found eggs the upper part of the mound was perfectly and
smoothly rounded over, so that anyone passing it without knowing the
singular habit of the bird might very readily suppose it to be an
ant-hill. Mounds in this state always contain eggs within, while those
without eggs axe not only not rounded over, but have the centres so
scooped out that they form a hollow. The eggs are deposited in a
verj' different manner to those of the Megapodius ; instead of each
being placed in a separate excavation in different parts of the mound,
they are laid directly in the centre, all at the same depth, separated
only by about three inches of earth, and so placed as to form a circle.
I regret we were so early ; had we been later, the probability is I should
have found the circle of eggs complete. No one, considering the
immense size of the egg, can for a moment suppose the bird capable
of laying more than one without at least the intermission of a day
and perhaps even more. Like those of the Megapodius, they are
covered with an epidennis-like coating, and are certainly as large, being
three inches and three-quarters in length by two and a-half inches in
breadth : they vary in colour from a very light-brown to a hght-salmon.
During the whole day we did not succeed in obtaining sight of the
bird, although we saw numerous tracks of its feet and many places
where it had been scratching. We also saw its tracks on the sand when

708 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

crossing the dried beds of the swamps at least two miles from the
breeding thicket, which proves that the bird in procm-ing its food
docs not confine itself to the brashes around its nest, but merely
resorts to them for the purpose of incubating. The native informed
us that the only chance of procimng the bird was by stationing our-
selves in sight of the mound at a httle distance and remaining quiet
and immovable till it made its appearance at sundown. This I attemp-
ted, and with the native encamped within twenty yards of the mound,
about an hour before sunset, taking the precaution to conceal ourselves
well with bushes from the quick eye of the bird, but leaving just a
siifficient opening to get a fair sight with my gim. In a half-sitting,
half-crouching position I thus remained in breathless anxiety for the
approach of the bird I had so long wished to see, not daring to move
a muscle for fear of moving a branch or making a noise by crushing
a dead leaf, till I was so cramped I could scarcely bear the pain in my
Umbs. Tlie bird did not, however, make its appearance, and the native,
with the fear of wading thi-ough the tliicket in darkness (for there was
no moon), became so impatient that he started up and began to talk
so loud and make so much noise that I was compelled to give up all
hopes of seeing the bu'd that night. However, just as we were passing
the mound, we started the bird from the opposite side, but from the
denseness of the thicket and the darkness closing around us, I had no
chance of getting a shot at it."

I have furnished two illustrations of egg-mounds of Mallee Hens —
one, in an open state, taken by Mr. D. Le Souef, in the mallee scrub,
Victoria ; the other, covered, taken by myself, in some '' stink "-wood
scrub in Western Australia.

558. — Catheturus lathami, J. E. Gray. — (476)
BRUSH TURKEY.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 77.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxii., p. 468.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., pp. 152-3 (1S65) ; Ramsay : Proc. Zool.
Soc, p. 116 (1876); *Le Souef: Ibis, p. 15 (1899).

Geographical Dixtribution. — Queensland and New South Wales.

Nest. — A large rotund mound of earth, chiefly black vegetable mould,
with an admixture of decaying matter, some of the mounds being sur-
rounded with sticks. Usually situated in dense scrub or i forest.
Dimensions, about 12 feet in diameter at the base, or a circumference
of about 34 to 36 feet, and height about 2^ feet.

Eggs. — Complement to a mound — if used by a pair of birds, twelve
to fifteen ; if used by several birds, i.e., three pairs, thirty-five to thirty-
six ; elliptical in shape, while some arc more or less compressed at one
end; texture of shell coarse; siu'face without gloss, and rough; colour,

•No dimensions given.

5

ID
H

C/2

X
H

O

2

o

J

y

.VESTS AND EGGS 01' AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 709

pm-p white, more or less stained with tlie earth of the mouud. Dimeii-
sious iu inches of four eggs from the same moimd : (1) 3-85 x 2-42,
(2) 3-57 X 2-35, (3) 3-55 x 2-37, (4) 3-o x 2-38. Apparently four types,
selected from a full mound (35 eggs) : long oval, 3-7 x 2-42 ; elliptically
incUncd, 3-44 x 2-38 ; elliptical, 3-63 x 2-36 ; oval, 3-67 x 2-2. The eggs
;u-e placed small ends downward in circles or tiers; but the exact
uumljcr of eggs to a circle and the distances apart of both eggs and
cii-cles are not definitely settled.

Observations. — Of :ill the ti-uly remarkable denizens of the dense
Eastern scrubs probably none is more extraordinary than the singular
Wattled Talegallus, or so-called Brush Turkey — a mound-raising bird.

Gould possibly ovei--reached the southern limits of the range of the
Talegallus when lie recorded that it was at Cape Howe. But it wa.s
foi-merly common in the district of Illawarra. From thence the Tale-
gallus has been found up to the Cape York Peninsula. It is also
found in some localities inland from the coastal ranges.

My introduction to this peculiar bird was also pecuUar. Dirring our
delightful Cardwell camp there was a bush fire in the vicinity, which
caused luany birds to shift quarters, including several TalegalU, wliicli
passed close to us, running in Indian file. While in locomotion their
bodies assimied a curious forward dip, probably their natural carnage
when travelling thi'ough scnxb, which they thread readily and with
rapidity.

Altliough it was close upon the breeding season of the Talegallus when
I reached the brigalow scnibs of Coomooboolaroo, these birds had not
even commenced to reconstruct their mounds, on account of a distressing
di'ought then existing. But during another sea.son, further down the
Continent, within the shades of the " Big Scrub," Richmond River, I
was fortunate enough to fall in with an egg mound, which made an
e.Kcellent subject for a photogi'aphic picture (see illustration). The
mound also yielded eight eggs, wliich were embedded at a temperatiu'e
of 94 degi-ees, or 4 degrees lugher than the prevailing atmosphere.
It was the lltli November (1891). I shall never forget the joy of
unearthing the hidden eggs in that sultry atmosphere. The " sweet "
toil caused great beads of perspiration to roll oft" the faces of my mate
and self, not to mention another " joy " — the coming into contact with
stinging trees that grew about the immense moimd. It is stated that
the male birds mostly perfonn the work of moimd building.

The eminent naturahst, Gould, was much elated because of the fact
that he was the first to make known the wonderful habits of the Tale-
gallus, and immediately upon these habits becoming known to him, he
wTote from Sydney, 5tli April, 1840, and published an accoimt in the
first volume of the " Tasmanian Joiunal " of that year, without waiting
for his own great work. Tlie following Lncludes a recapitulation of some
of the remarks as they afterwards appeared in his book : —

" The most remarkable circumstance connected with the economy
of this species is the fact of its eggs not being incubated in the manner
of other birds. At tlie commencement of the spring the Wattled Tale-
gallus scratches together an immense heap of decaying vegetable matter

7IO

N£STS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

as a depository for the eggs, and trusts to the heat engendered by the
process of fermentation for the development of the young. The heap
employed for this pui'pose is collected by the bii'ds during several weeks
previous to the period of laying, it varies in size from two to many cart-
loads, and in most instances is of a pyramidal form. The construction
of the mound is either the work of one pair of birds or, as some suppose,
the united labours of several ; the same site seems to be resorted to for
several years in succession, the birds adding a fresh supply of materials
each succeeding season.

" The materials composing these mounds are accumulated by the bird
gi'aspmg a quantity in its foot and tlu'owing it backwards to one common
centre, the smface of the gi'ound for a considerable distance being so
completely scratched over that scarcely a leaf or a blade of grass is left.
Tlie mound being completed, and time allowed for sufficient heat to be
engendered, the eggs ai'e deposited in a circle at a distance of nine or
twelve inches from each other, and buried more than an arm's depth
with the lai'ge end upwards ; they are covered up as they are laid, and
allowed to remain until hatched. I have been credibly mformed, both
by natives and by settlers living near their haunts, that it is not an
unusual event to obtain half-a^bushel of eggs at one time from a single
mound ; and I have myself seen a native woman bring to the encampment
in her net half as many as the spoils of a foraging excursion to the
neighboming scrub. Some of the natives state tliat the females are
constantly in the neighboiu'hood of the mound about the time the young
are likely to be hatched, and frequently uncover and cover them up again,
apparently for the purpose of assisting those that may have appeai'cd ;
while others have informed me that the eggs are merely deposited and
the young allowed to force their way unassisted. One point has been
clearly ascertained, namely, that the young, from the hour they are
hatchtd, are clothed with feathers, and have their wings sufficiently
developed to enable them to fly on to the branches of trees, should they
need to do so to escape from danger. They ai-e equally nimble on their
legs; in fact, as a moth emerges from a chiysalis, di-ies its wings and flies
away, so the youthful Talegallus, when it leaves the egg, is sufficiently
perfect to act independently and procure its own food. This we know
from a personal observation of the bird in a state of captivity, several
old birds having constructed mounds, in which their eggs have been
deposited and their yoimg developed, in the gardens of tlie Zoological
Society, at Regent's Park. I shall always look back witii pleasure

to the fact of my being the fii-st to make known these singular habits.
Although, unfortunately, I was almost too late for the breeding season,
I nevertheless saw several of these hatching mounds, both in the interior
of New South Wales and at Iliawan'a. In every instance they were
placed in retired and shady glens, and on the slope of a hill, the part
above tlie mound being scratched clean, while all below remained
untouched, as if the birds had found it more easy to convey the materials
down than to throw them up."

Other interesting information respecting the Talegallus has been
contributed by Dr. E. P. Ramsay, who, writing of the birds of Northern
Queensland, states: — "However plentiful this species may have been

NES'IS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 71 i

formerly iii the Hockiugham Bay district, it is now very scarce, ouly
ono having been obtamccl diu-iiig my visit. 1 found that two or more
females visited the same mound to lay theu" eggs in ; and when this is
the case the moimd is often twice as large as an ordinary moimd. It
seems probable that several individuals assist in scratching the mound
together, when a space, often fifty yards in diameter (on level groimd),
is cleai'ed of almost eveiy fallen leiif and twig. The mounds are often
six feet liigh,* and twelve to foui'teen yards at the base ; sometimes they
are more conical. The central portion consists of decayed leaves, mixed
with fine debris, and next of coarser or less rooted materials ; and the
outside is a mass of recently gathered leaves, sticks and twigs, not showing
any signs of decay. In opening the nest these are easily removed, and
must be cai-efully pushed backwards over the sides, beginning at the top.
Having cleared these and obtained plenty of room, remove the semi-
decayed strata, and below it, where the fonnation begins, in a mass
of light, iine leaf-mouid, wiU be found the eggs, placed with the thin end
downwards, often in a cuxle, with three or foiu' in the centre, about six
inches apai-t. At one side, where the eggs have been first laid, they
wih probably be found more or less incubated, but in the centre, where
the eggs are placed last, quite fresh ; and if only one pair of birds has
laid in the mound, about twelve or eighteen eggs will be the complement,
and w^ill be found arranged as desciibed above. On the other hand, if
several females resoii. to the same nest, the regularity will be greatly
interfered with, and two or three eggs in different stages of development
will be foimd close to one another, some quite fresh, others within a few
days of being hatched. There are usually ten eggs in the fii'st layer or
circle, five or six in the second, thi'ee or four only in the centre. I found
that the females return every second day to lay, but never succeeded in
ascertaining wliich of the parent birds opens the nest. The aborigines
informed me that the male bird always performs tliis office, and I usually
found my black boys vei-y correct in their statements of this kind .

The mounds of the Talogallus are seldom found on a great

incline when a level spot can be obtained. They frequently bring the
debris from a considerable distance, and in one instance, on the Richmond
River, 1 noticed a place where about a cart-load had been scratched
tlu'ough a shallow part of a creek three or four inches deep with water,
and up the other side of the bank to the moimd, which was over fortv
yards distant. The debris is always thrown behind them. The greatest
number of eggs taken from one -mound at one time was tliirty-six. This
was a very old mound, and resorted to by several individuals."

From Mr. Hermann Lau's manuscript respecting the Brush Turkey
in Southern Queensland, I take : " Large as its incubating place is, I have
passed by the spot several times without detecting it, because hidden
under the boughs of low overhanguig branches, mostly from the Moreton
Bay chestnut ( G (uttanospermum ) , or among the underwood thicket.
Have seen an accumulated heap of leaves about a foot in thickness, mixed
on the top with sticks, and, together with the soil underneath, making
a height of four feet by about twenty feet in circumference. Found

' Probably this height has been inadvertently over estimated— (A. J. C )

712

NESTS AND EGGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

as many as tliiity-six eggs iu two or three tiers, eighteen inches one from
another, nearly perpendicular,* the temperature of the mound being
ninety-six degrees. Such a nest, as I call it, is the common property
of tkree pairs of birds, as I have shot three male birds in close proximity
to a mound. The parent always keeps watch diuiug incubation, whicli
lasts an uncertain time, because such a heap contains young and fresh
eggs, with the rest at diflEerent stages between, at the same time. One
of the mothers goes with the hatched ones in tlie morning and
retmTis at night ; but the second day she keeps altogether away."

The fact that Mr. Lau shot three male birds in the vicinity of a
mound does not quite prove the ownership thereof of tlu-ee pairs of birds.
However, Mr. Lau verifies his hypothesis by fui'ther mentioning he
entirely plundered the eggs of a certain mound in the Higbfield scrub.
Retm-ning in a week he found the mound restored and containing ten
fresh eggs, which number wo'uld be about the conxct total, presuming
three birds laid at an intei^val of three days each.

The Talegallus commences to lay about the beginning of November.
Besides the moiuid wliich I examined in the " Big Scrub, containing
eight eggs, on the 1 Itli of that month, I obtained data of another mound
in the locality, which was visited on the 31st October, but contained no
eggs. On the 6th November it contained half a dozen eggs. Under
ordinary seasons probably the last eggs are hatched in Jauuaiy or
Februaiy.

However, more inland, at Coomooboolaroo, the Messrs. BaaTiard have
foimd the seasons variable. On the coast, November is the usual
laying month ; in dry seasons the Talegallus does not lay at all. Once
there came rain in March ; the following month the birds commenced to
lay, laying right tlu'ough the winter to Christmas. The greatest number
of eggs to one mound at Coomooboolaroo was fifteen, or rather foiu-teen
eggs, and young newly-hatched — possibly the progeny of one pair
of birds only.

Probably incubation, as is supposed in the case of the Mallee Hen,
lasts about six weeks.

Mr. D. Le Souef, in his interesting account of his " Ascent of Mount
Peter Botte, North Queensland," read before the Field Natm-alists' Club
of Victona, 8tli Febniary, 1897, writes : " Merrgo, om- dog, found several
Scnib Turkeys or Talegalli for us, and wc passed two mounds. The
male bird seems to make their nesting mound entirely by himself,
jealously keeping the hens away, and if they attempt to scratch holes in
the mound before he considers it ready, he beats them off unmercifully.
The birds we saw at the mounds were males. They are generally in the
neighbourhood, and keep it in repair. Tliey have stronger legs and feet
than the hen birds. These actions I have noticed by ■watching the
birds in captivity. Tluir mounds are composed principally of leaves
and a few sticks, but very little soil — not more than would naturally
cling to the leaves as they were being gathered together. Sixteen eggs
seem to be the full clutch. Mr. Hislop infoiTned me that in dry weather
the eggs have a greater qiumtity of leaves over them than in wet."

'1 presume Mr. Lau means one tier above another.— (A J.C )

XSSTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. yii

Mr. H. R. Elvcry, of xVlstouville, Ricliiiiond River district, removed
from a mound eggs of tlio Brush Tiu-kuy tliat were nearly incubated,
and phwed them in an ordinary incubator. When the young was ready
to be hatched it did not chip tlie shell, after the manner of domestic
poultry, but, with a shake or a sti'Uggle, the shell, which is exceedingly
brittle at this stage, burst or exploded into small pieces. When the
young emerged, each feather was encased in a kind of conical-shaped
gelatinous aip, which fell off as soon as it was dry, and the feather
expanded. When liberated in the yard, the yomig bird ran strongly,
c;u-iyiug its head downward, like a Quail threading grass.

During one season (18'J7), from the same mound, Mr. Elvery took
tliii'ty-five eggs in five visits between the dates of 25th September
and IGth November. There appeared to be three, if not four, types
of eggs in the lot.

A would-be egg robber was once in the act of demolishing a mound
for plunder, but instead of coming to a white egg he touched one of the
smooth coils of a black snake. Retm-uing with a stick, he saw the other
side of tlie mound nio\'ing and out popped snake nmnber two, which was
despatched before number one snake received similar attention.

ConcemLng Brash Tiu'keys in captivity, Mr. D. Le Souef writes :
'■ The young, when hatched, are a dark-brown colour, and difficidt to
detect in the scmb. They glow qiuckly, and in nine months are barely
distinguishable from their parents. They are easily kept in confine-
ment ; but, being very pvignacious, the males have to be separated when
the nesting season comes on. Two years ago, in the Melboume Zoo-
logical Gardens, there were several of these birds in one enclosiu-e.
Ihcy made a mound, but had not enough vegetation in it to cause
sufficient heat to hatch the fifty-six eggs that were laid m it, consequently
they were all addled. Last season only a pair was left in, and I had
the mound made up for them, and when one bird had finished laying,
had another prt in : she also laid in the mound — one bird laying twelve
eggs and the other thu-teen. Seventeen yoimg were hatched and made
their own way out. Sixteen of these were reared to matmity, and the
one that died did so immediately on escaping from the mound — the
other eight eggs were addled."

At the same Gardens where these birds have been successfully
reai-ed, Mr. Sherbom-ne Le Souef has watched the Brush Turkey
depositing her egg. She first scratches out a hole about 10 inches deep,
neai' the top of the momid, and enters it to lay, her head and portions
of neck only being visible above ground. All the time she is occupied
at the mound the male bird persecutes her, apparently endeavouring to
drive her away. As soon as the egg is laid she leaves, and the male at
once scrapes a few leaves, &c., into the hole, and getting in, tramples
them well down round the egg, which he first fixes in a perpendicular
position. He repeats the operation of scraping in debris several times
till the hole is completely filled.

jlA NESrS AND L.GGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

559. — Cathetubus purpukeicollis, Le Souef.
BARNARD BRUSH TURKEY.

Rejerence. — Ibis, p. 51 (1898).

Previous Description of Eggs. — Le Souef : Ibis, p. 51 (1898).

Geographical Distribution. — Cape York (North Queensland).

Nest. — A similai- mound to that constructed by tlic common Brush
Tiukey or Talegallus. ■

Hgys. — Clutch, — ; pure white and finely granulated. One obtained
at Somerset by Mr. H. Barnard, 3rd November, 1896, measiu'cs
3-61 X 2'36 inches (Le Souef).

Observations. — Mr. Harry Barnard, while eollectiug at Cape York
for Mr. Dudley Le Souef and other Melbourne gentlemen, at once
recognised the Brush Tiu'key at the head of that Peninsula to be different
from those he had been famiUar with at Coomooboolaroo, Central Queens-
land, since the) days of ihis boyhood. Mr. Le Souef, in describing the new
variety, proposed for the vernacular name the Bai-nard Bi-ush Turkey —
a just compliment to an excellent and conscientious field naturahst.

i'he following arc Mr. Le Souef's observations, taken from the " Ibis " :
" This species is found in the Cape York Peninsula. Mr. K. Broadbent
obsex-ved it during his extended visit there some years ago. Mr. Jardine,
of Somerset, Cape Yoi'k, and Mi-. H. G.i Barnard have lately noticed the
variation between it and the southern fonn, and the latter has kindly
sent me some skins. The principal difference between the two bu-ds is
in the coloration of the lower portion of the neck and wattles, which, in
Catheturus purpureicollis (the name by which |I propose to call it), is of
a purplish-white, and in Catheturus lathami red, with yellow wattles.
Otherwise the birds are very sunilar; but, as Mi-. H. G. Barnard says,
' anyone who has seen the bird in life will at once observe the difference.'
The bright colours soon fade on the death of the bird, and the difference
is not then so noticeable, although it can still be observed. Dui'ing the
breeding season, from October until Januai-y, the wattle of the male is
li inches in length, hanging from the lower portion of the neck. When
the breeding season is over the wattle shrinks and disappears ; it is then
more difficult to tell tlie male from the female when seen in the sciiib.

" The total length of the adult male is 29 inches, wing 16 inches, and
leg 1 1 inches. Its head and upper portion of tlie neck red, lower portion
of the neck, with wattles, whitish pm-ple ; eyes very light brown, almost
■white ; bill black ; feet and legs dark brown ; the upper sm-face is blackish-
brown, the tail being almost black ; the feathers of the luider surface
a<i'e also blackish brown, tipped with light gi'cy. The female is slightly
smaller than the male; the colouration of the head and neck is not so
bright, and she has no wattle, otherwise she is similar.'

NESTS AA'D EGGS OF AVSTRALIAN BIRDS. 711;

560. — Megapoijius duperueyi, Lesson. — (478)
M. tumulus, Gould.

SCRUB FOWL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 79.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxii., p. 454.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 175 (1865); Ramsay: Proc. Zool.
Soc, p. 118 (1876); *Le Souef : Ibis, p. 18 (1899).

Geiigraphicdl Distribution. — Northeru Territory and North Queens-
land ; also ranging through New Guinea, Salawatte, Aru, Ke, Banda,
Sumba, Floras, and Lonibok to the Kangean Archipelago.

Nest — or egg mound, usually of immense size, rotund in shape,
occasionally conical ; composed of loose, black, vegetable moidd or soil,
mixed with sticks, leaves, &c., if close to the beach the movmd is chiefly
sand and shells ; usually situated within a few hvuidred yards of the sea-
shore, and protected by tluckly-fohaged scmb or trees. Dimensions,
about 20 ,feet in diameter at base, or a circumference of about 60 feet ;
height about 5 feet — equal to a displacement of between 400 and 500
cubic feet. (See illustration.) Maximum dimensions recorded by
Gould; cuxumference, 150 feet (MacgiUivray) ; height, 15 feet (Gilbert).

Eggs. — Clutch or complement to a mound, variously stated, but
probably eight to ten ; long ellipse in shape, both ends being nearly ahkc ;
textiu'o of shell coarse ; surface without gloss ; colour, pinkish or yellowish
buff, the outer or beautiful pinkish buff coating, where removed, shows
the yellowish buff. If both colours are scratched off a wlutisli
shell is revealed. Dimensions in inches : (1) 3'62 x 1-98, (2) 3-55 x 2-07,
(3) 3-4 X 2-05, (4) 3-33 x 2-1.

Ohservations. — This wonderful mound-raising bird is even more extra-
ordinary than the Lipoa or the Talegallus in the matter of its mode of
incubation.

The Megapode or Scrub Hen, as it is sometimes termed, is restricted
to the dense thickets of the northern coasts. It likewise enjoys an
extra-Australian habitat extending to New Guinea and many of the
Austro-Malayan Islands.

On the opposite side of the creek to our Cardwell camp, the Megapodes
on going to roost in the evening used to keep the scrab alive with their
loud chuckling calls, which were sometimes contruued far into the night,
especially if it were moonlight. In the dense labyiTinth of imdergrowth
on Baniard Islands we came across many of the Megapodes' momids, each
resembling so many cart-loads thi-own together of sandy soil, mixed with
rotten vegetation. As it was then the beginning of September, some
of tlio mounds bore evidence of preparation for the season, being scraped
up nito conical shapes four feet or five feet high. While lying in

*No dimensions given.

-l6 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ambush for Rifle Birds, Megapodes frequently passed close to us, mmiiug
over the ground through the scrub.

The Megapode differs from the otlier two Australian mound-building
birds in that it raises immensely larger mounds ; the largest, according
to the dimensions furnished by Gilbert and Macgillivray, must have
contained, by tlie computations of a mathematical friend of mine, nearly
nine thousand cubic feet of earth. Into these great mounds the
Megapode appears to bmrow for several feet to deposit its egg — not hke
the Lipoa and Talegallus, which open the mounds up for that pui-pose.
Owing to the great interest attached to the Megapode and its mound-
raising procli\'ities, I make no apology for giving at length (from Gould)
Gilbert's original and most entertaining account of his observations in
the Port Darwin district, 1842 : " On my arrival at Port Essiugton, my
attention was attracted to numerous immense mounds of earth, which
were pointed out to me by some of the residents as the tumuli of the
aborigines ; on tlie other hand I was assui-ed by the natives that they
were formed by the Megapode for tlie purpose of incubating its eggs.
Their statement appeared so extraordinary and so much at variance
with the genera] habits of bii'ds, that no one believed them or took
sufficient interest in the matter to examine the mounds, and thus to
verify or refute their accounts. Another circimistance which induced a
doubt of their veracity was the great size of the egg brought in by the
natives as that of the bird. Aware that the eggs of the Lipoa were
hatched in a similar manner, my attention was immediately arrested by
these accounts, and I at once detennined to ascertain all I possibly could
respecting so singular a feature in the bird's economy ; and having
procured the assistance of a very intelhgent native, who undertook to
guide me to the different places resorted to by the bird, I proceeded on
the 16th November to Knocker's Bay, a pai-t of Port Essington com-
paratively but little known, and wJiere, I had been informed, a number
of these birds was always to be seen. I landed beside a thicket, and
had not proceeded far from the shore ere I came to a mound of sand and
shells, with a slight mixture of black soil, the base resting on a sandy
beach, only a few feet above liigh-water mark. It was enveloped in
the lai'ge yellow-blossomed Hihisrus, was of a conical form, twenty feet
in circumference at the base, and about five feet high. On pointing
it out to the native and asking him what it was, he replied, ' Ooorcgoorg a
Rambal ' (Megapode's house or nest). I then scrambled up the sides of
it, and to my extreme deUght foimd a yoimg bird in a hole about two
feet deep. It was lying on a few dry withered leaves, and appeared to
be only a few days old. So far I was satisfied that these moimds had
some connection with the bird's mode of incubation ; but I was still
sceptical as to the probability of these young birds ascending from so
great a depth, as the natives represented, and my suspicions were con-
firmed by my being unable to induce the native, in this instance, to
search for the eggs, his excuse being that ' he knew it would be useless,
as he saw no traces of the old birds having recently been there !' I took
the utmost care of the young bird, intending to rear it if possible. I
tliereforo obtained a moderately-sized box, and placed in it a large portion
of sand. As it fed rather freely on bi-uised Indian corn, 1 was in full

i^ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

717

hopes of succeeding ; but it proved of so wild and intractable a disposition
that it would not reconcile itself to such close confmement, and effected
its escape on the tlijrd day. Diu-ing the period it remained in captivity
it was incessantly occupied in scratching up the sand into heaps ; and the
rapidity with which it threw the sand from one end of the box to the
other was quite siu-prising for so young and small a bird, it>s size not being
lai'ger than that of a small quail. At night it was so restless that I
was constantly kept awake by the noise it made in its endeavours to
escape. In scratching up the sand it only used one foot, and having
grasped a handful, as it were, the sand was tin-own behind it, with but
little apparent exei-tion, and without sliifting its standing position on
the other leg. Tliis habit seemed to be the result of an inmite restless
disposition and a desire to use its powerful feet, and to have but little
connection with its feeding; for, although Indian com was mixed with
the sand, I never detected the bird picking any of it up while thus
employed.

" I continued to receive/the eggs without having the opportunity of
seeing them taken from the mound until the 6th of Februaiy, when on
again visiting Knocker's Bay, I had the gratification of seeing two taken
from a depth of six feet, in one of the largest mounds I had then seen.
In this instance the holes ran down in an obhque direction from the centre
toward the outer slope of the hillock, so that, though the eggs were six
feet deep from the siunmit, they were only two or three feet from the
side. The birds are said to lay but a single egg in each hole, and after
the e^ is deposited, the earth is immediately thrown down, lightly, until
the hole is filled up. The upper part of the moimd is then smoothed
and, roimded over. It is easily known when a Megapode has been
recently excavating, from the distinct impressions of its feet on the top
and sides of the mound, and the earth being so Hghtly tlirown over, that
with a slender stick the direction of the hole is easily detected, the ease
or difficulty of thrusting the stick down indicating the length of time that
may have elapsed since the bird's operations. Thus far it is easy enough,
but to reach the egg requires no little exertion and perseverance. The
natives dig them up with their hands alone, and only make sufficient
room to admit their bodies, and throw the earth out between their legs.
By gi-ubbing with their hands alone they are enabled to follow the direc-
tion of the hole with greater certainty, wliich wiU, sometimes, at the
depth of several feet, turn off abruptly at right angles, its direct course
being obstructed by a clump of wood or some other impediment. Their
patience is often put to severe trials. In the present instance the
native dug down six times in succession to a depth of at least six or seven
feet without finding an egg, and at the last attempt came up in such
a state of exhaustion that he refused to try again ; but my interest was
now too much excited to relinquish the opportimity of verifying the
native's statements, and by the offer of an additional reward I induced
him to make another effort. Tliis seventh trial proved successful, and
my gi-atification was complete when the native, with equal pride and satis-
faction, held up an egg. and after two or three more attempts produced
a second ; thus proving how cautious Eiu-opeans should be of disregarding
the nan-atives of these poor children of Natiu-e because they happen to

71 8 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

sound extraordinary, or different from anything with which they were
previously acqviainted.

" I re-visited Knockei-'s Bay on thc^ 10th of Febiiiary, and having with
some difficulty penetrated into a dense tliicket of cane-like creeping
plants, I suddenly foimd myself beside a mound of gigantic proportions.
It was fifteen feet in height and sixty feet in circumference at the base,
the upper part being about ai third less, and was entirely composed of
the richest description of light vegetable mould. On the top were very
recent m.-rks of bird's feet. Tlie native and myself immediately sot to
work, and after an hour's extreme labour, rendered the more fatiguing
from the excessive heat and the tormenting attacks of mjrriads of mos-
quitoes and sand-flies, I succeeded in obtaining an egg from the depth
of about five feet. It wa,s in a perpendicular position, with the earth
siUTOiuiding and very lightly toiiching it on aU sides, and without any
other material to impart warmth, which, in fact, did not appear necessary,
the nionnd being quite wai-m to the hands. The holes in this moimd
commenced at the outer edge of the sitmmit and ran down obliqviely
towards the centre : their direction, therefore, is not unifoiTn. Like
the majority of the mounds I have seen, this was so enveloped in thickly-
foliaged trees as to preclude the possibilitv of the sun's rays reaching any
parti of it.

" Tlie mounds differ very miich in their composition, form, and situa-
tion. Most of those that art^ placed near the, water's edge were foiTned
of sand and shells, without a vestige of any other material ; but in some
of them I met with a portion of soil and decaving wood. When con-
structed of this loose material they are very irregular in outline, and
often resemble a bank thrown up by a constant heavy surf. One
remarkable specimen of this description, situated on the southern side
of Knocker's Bay, ha.s the appearance of a bank, from twenty-five to
thirty feet in length, with an average height of five feet. Another
even more singular is situated at the head of the harbour, and is com-
posed entirely of pebbly ironstone, resembling a confused heap of sifted
gravel. Into this I dug to the depth of two or three feet without finding
anv change of character. It mav have been conical originally, but is
now without any regularitv, and is verv extensive, covering a .space of at
least one hundred and fifty feet in circumference. These remarkable
specimens would, however, seem to be, exceptions, as bv far the greater
number are entirely formed of light, black vegetable soil, are of a conical
form, and are situated in the densest thickets. Occa.sionally the mounds
are met with in barren, rocky and sandy situations, where not a particle
of soil similar to that of which they are composed occurs for miles around.
How the soil is produced in such situations seems unaccountable. It
has been said that the parent birds bring it from a great distance ; but
as we have seen that they readily adapt themselves to the difference of
situation, this is .scarcely probable. I conceive that they collect the
dead leaves and other vegetable matter that may be at hand, and which,
decomposing, forms this part.icular kind of soil. The mounds are doubt-
less the work of many years, and of many birds in succession. Some of
them are evidentlv verv ancient, trees being often seen growing from tlieir
side. In one instance I found a tree growing from the middle of a

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. jxg

moiind which was a foot in diameter. I endeavoiu-ed to glean from the
natives how the young effect thcii- escape ; but on this point they do
not agree, some asserting that they iind their way unaided ; others, on
tho contrary, affiinied tliat the old bii-d, knowing when the yoimg are
ready to emerge from their confinement, scratch down and release them.
■' The natives say that only a single pair of birds is ever found at the
mound ,at one time ; and such, judging from my own observation, I
believe to be the case. They also affirm that the eggs are deposited at
night, at intervals of several days ; and tliis I also believe to be correct,
as four eggs, taken on the same day and from the same mounci, contained
young, in difl'erent stages of development; and the fact that they are
always placed pei-pendicvdarly is established by the concim-ing testintony
of all tho different tribes of natives I have questioned on the subject."

The foUowing accovmt of the breeding pLaces of the remarkable
Megapodc was transmitted to Gould by Mr. John Macgillivray as the
result of his obsen'ations on Nogo or Megapodius Island, in Endeavour
Strait, and will also be read with interest : — " The most southern locality
known to me for this bird is Haggerston Island (in lat. 12 ' 3 ' south),
where I observed several of its moimds, of very laige size, but did not
see any of the birds. Dming the survey of Endcavoiu: Strait in
H.M.S. ' BKinible,' I was more fortunate, having succeeded in procuring
both male and female on, the island marked ' Nogo ' upon the chart, where
I resided several days for that sole purpose. On this small island, not
more than half a mile in length, rising at one extremity into a low,
roimded hiU, densely covered with jimgle (or what in New South Wales
would be called ' brush '), three mounds, one of them apparently deserted
before completion, were foimd. Tlie two others were examined by
Mr. Jukes and myself. The most recent, judging from the smoothness
of its sides and the want of vegetable matter, was situated upon the crest
of the Jiill, and measured eight feet in height (or thirteen and a half feet
from base of slope to summit), and seventy-seven feet in circumference.
In this mound, after several hours' hai'd digging into a well-packed mass
of earth, stones, decaying branches and leaves and other vegetable matter,
and the living roots of trees, we foimd numerous fragments of eggs,
besides one broken egg containing a dead and putrid chick, and another
whole one, which proved to be addled. All were embedded at a depth
of six feet from the nearest part of the siu'face, at which place the heat
produced by the fennentation of the mass was considerable. The egg,
3;^ inches by 2^ inches, wa.s dh-ty brown, covered with a kind of epidermis,
which easily chipped off, exposing a pure wliite surface beneath. Another
moimd, situated at the foot of the hill, close to the beach, measured no
less than 150 feet in circumference ; and to fomi this immense accumu-
lation of materials the ground in the vicinity had been scraped quite
bai'e by the birdSj and numerous shallow excavations pointed out whence
the materials had been derived. Its foiTn was an in'egular oval, the
flattened summit not being central as in the first instance, but situated
near* the larger end, which was elevated fourteen feet from the gi-ound,
the slope measuring in various directions, 18, 21J, and 24 feet. At
Port Lihou, in a small bav a few miles to the westward ; at Cape York,
and at Port Essington I foimd other mounds which were comparatively

720 NESTS A\D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

low, iind appeared to have been dug into by the natives. The great
size tlie tuinuli (which are probably the work of several generations)
have attained on Haggerston and Nogo Islands arises, doubtless, from
those places being seldom visited by the aborigines. I foimd several
eggs of large size in the ovarimn of a female shot in August, while the
condition of the oviduct showed that an egg had very recently passed ;
lience it is probable that, in spite of their great comparative size, one
bird lays several ; but whether each mound is resorted to by more than
one pair, I had not the means of ascertaining."

During Dr. E. P. Ramsay's toiu" to Northern Queensland, 1873-4, he
made valuable field observations on the Megapode, which chiefly con-
firmed those made by the two previous explorers already quoted at
length.

Dr. Ramsay examined several mounds dui-ing March and obtained
fresh eggs; while newly-hatched young wei'e foimd singly in places
throughout the denser parts of the scnib. One little fellow (only five
and a half inches in length) in particular, met fully a mile from the
nearest mound, was well able to fly, and settled on, a tree twenty feet
from the ground.

Notwithstanding all these accoiuits, there still remain many
important points in the nidification of the Megapode to be settled. For
instance, what ntunber of eggs is deposited in a , moimd ? We are
aware an incredible number is laid during the season — so many, that
even the poor blackfellows assert that " both fellow (male and female)
lay piccaninnies (eggs).'' Tlie eggs, like those of the Lipoa and Tale-
gallus, arc excellent eating — the wliite man prefeiTing them fresh, but
the blackfellow, half hatched. It would also be of undoubted interest
to learn how many birds frequent each mound, how many eggs each
female bird lays, and if tlic eggs are arranged within the hatching
moimd in any sort of system. It is supposed by some persons that the
birds work at night at their mounds, which are small in size at first, and
used by a pair of birds only, but afterwards they and their progeny keep
on adding to it and using it year after year.

Some light is thrown upon the subject by Mr. A. H. Kissack, in an
instructive account* of a Megapode (M. hmztrri ) inhabiting Savo, an
island in the Solomon Group. This bird, however, buiTows in the soft
sand instead of rearing a moimd. Mr. Kissack observed that occasionally
two birds were engaged alternately at the same buiTow, one, after
digging for five or ten minutes, giving place to the other bu-d, which
goes quietly to work while its comrade preens its feathei-s close by. Side
buiTOWs lead from the main one, each of which receives a single egg, and
is afterwards filled up, when the main burrow is also filled. The
number of eggs contained in each hole varies from eight to ten. It
was reckoned that the incubation of an egg lasted from five to six weeks.
One important point Mr. Kissack appeai-s to have settled is tliat the
young Megapode, when hatched, makes its way through the sand which
envelops it, and immediately runs off and shifts for itself.

The beautiful buff-tinted eggs of the Megapode in my cabinet were

•Proc. Roy. Soc, Queensland (1884J.

A'ESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 72 1

collected by Mr. Dudley Lc Souef. His first pleasant experience of
these indeed curious birds, like my own, was gained in the scrub on
Bamai-d Islands when in quest of Rifle Birds. Mr. Le Souef, being later
in the season, was more successful as regards eggs. Two mounds he
(accompanied by Mr. Harry Barnard) prospected contained fresh eggs,
three and one respectively.

Ml". Le Souef gives the temperature of a moiuid at 94° — nearly
the same as I registered for the Talcgalkis. Another indication of a
Megapode's mound ho took on, the mainland was 95" at a depth of one
and a half to three feet, where the eggs rested.

Only one pair of birds appears to frequent a mound, which is small
(about two feet high) at first, and is added to season after season till its
immense proportions become quite a featiu'e in the scnib. When the
female wishes to deposit an egg, a hole is scraped straight in, sometimes
obliquely, near the top, to a distance, varying according to circiun stances,
from six to sixty inches. Tlie holes, which appear to take no particular
order, are about twelve inches in diameter. When the egg has been
duly deposited at the terminal end, the excavation is of course filled in
and smoothed off with the rest of the mound.

Mr. Le Souef further adds that Scrub Fowls, being very restless, are
difficult to keep in confinement, and generally end in accidentally killing
themselves.

With regard to the laying season it is probable that eggs may be
found in some mounds almost at any time of the year, but of course
are more plentiful at certain seasons, to wit, from August to March.

Sub=Order — Alectropodes.

FAMILY— PHASIANID.5; : PHEASANTS, &c.

561. — CoTURNix PECTORALis, Gould. (486)

STUBBLE QUAIL.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 88.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxii., p. 244.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould: Birds of Au.stralia (1848),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 191 (1865) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 289, pi. 16, fig. 10 (1S89).

Geographical Dixtrihution. — Queensland, New South Wales, Vic-
toria, South and West Australia, and Tasmania.

Xeat. — Upon the ground in crop or herbage, the nesting hollow,
4i inches across, being lined with straw or grass as the case may be.
(See illustration.)
46

722 NESTS ANV EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Eggs. — Clutch, seven to eleven or twelve, rare instances maximum
fourteen ; roundish oval in shape ; texture somewhat coarse ; sm-facc
glossy; colour, dirty-yellow, heavily blotched and smudged with dark
olive-green. Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch : (1) 1-27 x -91,
(2) 1-27 X -9, (3) 1-25 X -93, (4) 1-25 x -88, (5) 1-22 x "91, (6) 1-22 x -92,
(7) 1-19 x -88. (Plate 17.)

Observations. — The Stubble Quail may be said to be the only true
Quail in Australia. As its name imphes, it frequents grassy or stubble-
like localities on plain or in forest aUke, and is found thi-oughout
Austraha, except perhaps the extreme north, and Tasmania.

It is a line bird, with its brown coat, the feathers being zig-zagged
transversely with lines of black, and striped down the centre with
spear-Uke markings of yellowish-white. The chest and flanks are
brown, while the abdomen is whitish ; feet also whitish, bill dark, and
eyes hazel. Total length about 6j inches; bill, \ inch; wing, 3 J
inches ; tarsus, | inch. The male is readily distinguished from the female
by the black markings on his chest and his buff-coloured throat, the
throat of the female being white. Two brace of both sexes presented
to me by a friend at the opening of last season weighed 15 ounces
total.

During his rambles in Australia, Gould frequently found nests and
eggs of this Quail, remarking that " the number of eggs in each nest
varies from eleven to fourteen. The situations chosen for the nest
arc much diversified ; sometimes it is placed among the thick grass
of luxuriant flats, while at others it is aiifully concealed by a tuft of
herbage on the open plains."

I possess pleasant recollections of my first experiences amongst the
Stubble Quail, when long ago, as boys, we used to find their eggs in
the crops on the plain, or imder rank tussock grass that clothed the
banks of the Werribee River. So plentiful were they one season that
we captured some of the birds themselves, not to mention maimed
birds that had survived the shot of the fowler and escaped liis dogs.

Mr. C. H. Grove, Snowy River, Gippsland, sent me the following
interesting note, together with the clutch of seven Stubble Quail's
eggs: — "Bird commenced to lay 30th November (1891), and laid for
seven consecutive days, the smallest egg (a brownish-coloured example)
being the last. The nest on the first day was a bare hole scraped in
the ground, but after the eggs were all laid some slight attempt was
made at hning it."

In Southern Victoria, before the Quails were disseminated or dis-
tributed, " Old Bushman " (the late H. W. Whcelwiight), in liis
fascinating little volume, " Bush Wanderings of a Natiu-aUst," remarks
that he observed the Stubble Quail come down about the middle of
September, and remain to breed, and early in Fcbi-uai-y they all appeared
to leave the breeding groimds, but not the district, for they then packed,
and in certain localities large flocks were to be seen Iat« in March.
The call-note of the Stubble Quail is a loud, oft-repeated " to-wcop."
the native name of the bird. Their note as they rise is a sharp chirp
Sportsmen regard the bird as easy to kill on account of its sti-a.ight
flight.

STUBBLE gUAlL'S NEST.

From a Photo by the A uthor.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. ^^S

Some of the eao-licr birds breed in September, others later, accord-
ing to the season, the majority laying in the summer months (i.e.,
December, January, and Fcbruai7), or when the gi-ass seeds ripen.
We have many instances of late (probably second) broods in Victoria.

I knew of an incident at Mordialloc, on the opening day of the
shooting season for Quail (1st March, 1897), when a Stubble bird rose
and was shot, it being aftei-wards ascertained she flushed from a set
of sLk fresh eggs. The same season, in Gippsland, at mid-winter (July),
a clutch of newly-hatched young was seen.

Captain Doveton, a keen sportsman, kindly furnished me with a
note of having seen, at Sunbiuy, on 28th April, 1888, Stubble Quail
too young to shoot.

My friend Mr. A. W. IMilligan, in communicating to " The Austral-
asian," and writing from Gippsland, the season 1895, states; — "It
might be interesting to some of your sporting and scientific readers
to know that on Good Friday morning last, 12th April, wliilst Quail
shooting on the Traralgon Park Estate, Traralgon, I foimd a Quail's
nest containing seven eggs. On breaking one of them I found it to
have been comparatively new-laid. On Easter Tuesday following, the
dogs of my friend who accompanied me flushed a ' squeaker,' which
I subsequently caught, and have now in captivity. Tlie dogs on the
same day found three much younger birds, which were imable to fly,
one of which they killed. The birds were the Coturnix pecforalis, or
Stubble Quail."

I could recount many other instances of Quails breeding late in
the season, were it necessaiy.

There has been much controversy in Victoria about the close
season for Quails, many of our sportsmen complaining that it opens
too late (i.e., 1st March) ; but I think it wovdd be to the sportsman's
own interest to let the law remain as it is, besides, it would give the
birds the benefit of the doubt.

Our Quail are not migratory, as some persons suppose, but their
movements are regulated by the seasons. If they were migratory,
they would disappear from Tasmania also, where, if I remember
rightly, the shooting season does not open till the 1st May.

A fact that mitigates against our brooding Quails is that
they are prone to nest in grain crops, which are usually garnered
before the young are hatched ; thus many eggs are destroyed. Then
if the old birds seek other pastures they have hardly time to rear
second broods before the hunter's gun is heard.

I may here give the interesting and valuable remarks of " Neno,"
as they appeared in "The Australasian," 5th December, 1896: — "The
common beUef is that Stubble Quail migrate, arriving in Victoria in
spring, and leaving in autumn. Such a beUef is erroneous. Quail do
not migrate. They certainly shift about, and at odd times, owing to
bad seasons, they move off to better feeding grounds. In spring the
stubble birds are numerous on the gi-assy river flats and reclaimed coast
marsh lands of South Gippsland, also in growing crops, and such like
places. Young Quail may be seen in November, and I have noted
them up to the end of February. When tlie shooting season opens in

724 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

March many birds are shot on the flats and stubble fields, but during
April and May sportsmen find that they are getting scarce in such
places, and nine out of ten shooters will tell you that the birds are
migrating. Not so; they have only gone to better feeding grounds,
and will not be far off. The great wastes of barren bayonet or spear
gi'ass plains are the winter home of the Stubble Quail. The birds feed
on the rich simflower-hke seed of the spear-gi-ass. There are miles of
spear grass plains in South Gippsland, stretching from the mouth of
Powlett River rovmd to Foster. In winter Quail are to be foimd
whei'ever the spear-gi'ass is in seed. The rat-tail-shaped seed pods are
known locally as black-heads. Shooting over these plains I kill mostly
stubble birds in the open, and Brown Quail on the edges of patches
of stunted tea-tree. On the dry ridges I get an occasional brace of
Faulted birds. The plains simply swann with the Uttle King Quail.
The best shooting is to be had in June and July. In March a good
shot should account for every bird rising within range, for, as a nile,
they are mostly squeakers, but on the open spear grass plains on a
chilly winter's day, with a stiff breeze blowing, the fine, full-conditioned
Stubble or Brown Birds get away with strength and speed, that will
test the skill of the most expert. Duiing last winter (1896) Quail were
exceptionally plentiful on the Powlett Plains, and at Cape Patterson,
but the market shooters swept over the country, and cleaned them out
to a bird. There were hundreds of brace shot round about the village
of Inverloch alone. Tlie marketer uses the best nitro powders, and
I have seen one tramping behind eight setters, working regularly day
after day, and kilhng ovit every bird, often shooting as many as thirty
brace in a day. When a marketer camps on a sliooting gromid he
appears to consider that he is sole owner of the game, and manfully
cUsputes the right of anyone else to shoot. I need scarcely say that he
is not much loved by the sporting Quail shooter. When shooting in
winter on the plains I have noticed the absence of Hawks. One would
natru-ally expect to find them where game is so plentiful, yet wo
rarely see anything but an occasional Eagle. I often shoot specimens
of the domestic cat gone wild, foxes and native cats on the Quail
grounds ; and I think the fox is the greatest enemy they have."

Young in down resemble miniature chicks of a domestic fowl, being
brownish in colour, indistinctly striated with black.

562-3. — Syncecus australis, Temminck. — (487, 489 and 490)
S. sordidus, Gould.
S. cervinus, Gould.

BROWN QUAIL.

Figure.— GonXd : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pis. 89 and 91.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxii., p. 247.

I'revious Descriptions of Eggs.— Gou\d : Birds of Australia (1848) ,

also Handbook, vol. ii., pp. 193 and 196 {1865) ; North : Austn.

Mus. Cat., pp. 289 and 291 (1889) ; Campbell : Proc. Roy.

Soc, Victoria, vol. iii., p. 5, pi. i, fig. 6 (1890) ; North : Trans.

Roy. Soc, South Australia, vol. xxii., p. 16.1 (iSqSl.

Qi-dcjrapMcttl Dixtrihntion. — Whole of Au.stralia and Tasmania,
including islands in Bass Strait; also New Guinea.

A'ESTS AXD ECUS OF AVSTKALIAN BIRDS. 725

Ntft. — A slight coustructiou of dead grass aud leaves, placed in a
hollow ou the ground, usually in rank herbage — tussock grass, rushes,
&c. — but sometimes in cornfields.

Eggs. — Clutch, seven to eleven usually (ten to eighteen, Gould) ;
roimdish in form, sharply compressed at one end ; textm-e somewhat
coarse and strong ; s\u-f;ice glossy ; colour, sometimes (especially in the
Tropics) of a uniform dull-white, occasionally showing a perceptible
bluish tone, but more frequently more or less finely freckled with olive
or light-brown. The markings, when fresh, may be removed by
moisture. Dimensions in inches of a clutch of typically mai-ked eggs
from New South Wales: (1) 1-24 x -93, (2) 1-2 x -89, (3) M9 x -9,
(4) 1-18 X -9, (5) 1-18 X -89, (6) M8x-89, (7) 1-17 x -9, (8) 1-16 x -92,
(9) 1'14 X -89 (Plate 17); of a somewhat stout set from West Austraha
(variety S. sordidus, Gould) ; (1) 1-18 x -96, (2) 1-17 x -97, (3) M6 x -95,
(4) 1'14 X '95 ; of a set from North Queensland (variety iS'. cervinu.';,
Gould), duU or yellowish-wliite, without markings: (1) 1-17 x -92,
(2) 1-14 X -88, (3) 1-12 X -9, (4) 1-12 x -89, (5) M2 x -88.

Observatiun.<s. — The Brown Quail, except for its thick bill, at first
glance resembles the Painted Quail — genei-al tone of plumage brownish,
the feathers of the upper smface being irregularly but beautifully
marked wth transverse bars of grey, black, and chestnut ; each feather
is also adorned with a light stripe down the centre. The imder siu-face
is greyish-bull, each feather being ornamented with zig-zag markings
of black ; bill, bluish horn ; eyes, orange ; feet, dull-yellow. Total
lengtli, 6A inches ; wing, 3i iuches ; bill, | inch ; tarsus, | inch. A
brace will weigh about 8 oimces. This bud has a whistle-like call-note.

Brown Quails appear to assume a variety of markings which sorely
puzzle the student. Even the great Gould was himself in doubt of
his own varieties, because he records : " The Swamp Quails of Aus-
tralia must either be regarded as constituting but one or several
species — a point wliich must be left for future investigation, and which
can only be detemiined bv persons resident in the colony, or by a care-
ful examination and comparison of a much larger number of examples
than are at present to be found in this coimtry.'

In these later days, no doubt from the general series at his
command, Mr. W. R. Ogilvie-Grant, when compiling the xxii. volume
of the British Museum " Catalogue,' had some groimds for amalga-
mating Gould's four species of Brown, or Swamp Quails, under the
common name Synoscus australi^. However, if ornithological geo-
gi-aphy coimts for anytliing, Gould's northern variety, S. cervinus, may
be distinguished by its more deUcate and sandy -buff coloming, the
eggs being invariably of a uniform dull or cream-white, without
markings, wliile the western variety, S. sordidus, is altogether a more
sombre-coloiu'ed bii-d. and has reddixh legs instead of yclhiwish, as in
the other varieties. I think the fact of S. sordidus possessing different
coloiu-ed legs is at least some evidence in favour of keeping that bii-d
separate.

The Brown, or Swamp Quail, as the latter name well suggests, is

726 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

addicted to moist grassy flats and swampy locaKties, and may be said
generally to be found throughout Australia, including Tasmania and
some of the intennediate islands in Bass Strait. It is regarded as a
stationai-y species, and would appear to be partial to insular quarters.
We shot one near our camp on Kent Group. While on the Fumeaux
Group Expedition several specimens were seemed which were flushed
from the coarse tussock grass on Cat and Storehouse Islands, to the
east of FUnders Island. On Albatross Island, on the opposite
(western) side of the Strait, Mr. D. Le Souef, 28th November, 1894,
picked up a Brown Quail which appeared to have travelled a long
distance, as it was much exhausted, and imable to fly.

An expert shooter writes that the Brown Quail usually " rises like
the Partridge, flies strong and quick, and is decidedly the most sporting
bu-d of the lot " of Austrahan Quails.

It may not be referable to this species, but it is stated that during
June and August, 1841, the officers of the "Beagle" shot no less than
one hundred and forty-five Quails, besides twenty-one Pigeons and
Doves, and twelve Rails of two kinds, on Booby Island, Torres Strait.

The western dusky-colom-cd variety of the Brown Quail sometimes
wanders towards eastern locahties, for it is occasionally found in Soutli
Australia and Victoria. The species is tolerably plentiful in the
heathy situations and boi'onia swamps of South-western Austraha.
On Breaksea Island I enjoyed an opportunity of cultivating their close
acquaintance, for from behind the granite boulders I watched small
coveys dusting themselves in the sandy earth after the fasliiou of
domestic fowls.

I learnt from the Hght-keepers on that island, from whom I received
specimens of eggs, that the young are usually noted about Christmas-
time or the beginning of the year. It is probable that the principal
breeding months are November, December and January.

Another season (1890-1) Mr. A. Robinson (principal light-keeper)
wi-ote me : " Quails on the island all the year round. First young seen
about 10th November. Took the two clutches 14th December — too
late to blow."

The following are Mr. G. A. Keartland's brief observations of the
Brown Quail in the gi"assy tracts of the North-west : — " Amongst the
tall kangaroo grass between Lake Way and the camel depot numbers
of these birds were seen, and several shot. One female lulled the '20th
August contained a perfect egg in the oviduct. Others were seen near
Mount Arthur in April, and several clutches of their eggs were picked
up as we crossed a level plain covered with Flinders gi-ass. The eggs
were scattered, as though they had been washed from the nests by
recent tropical rains. Both birds and eggs were identical with those
found in Victoria."

Anent the domestic economy of Brown Quails, Mr. G. A. Keartland
read the following interesting note at the Field Naturalists' Club of
Victoiia, February, 1899, in reference to these birds breeding in liis
aviary: — "A glance at the hen whil.st sitting showed how these birds
manage to cover such large clutches of eggs in a state of nature. The
lung feathers on the sides of the breast spread out at right angles from

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 727

the body imtil the bkd could hide an ordinary tea saucer. xUthough
the male bii-d parsed most of the time beside his mate, I do not think
he took any part in the work of incubation, as he never stayed at the
nest when the female was away. Early on 3rd Februaiy I saw broken
egg-shells near the nest, and two small chocolate-coloured heads pro-
truding from under the wings of the female ; but the male was
perched on the Pan-ot's log, about four feet high. Next morning five
chicks were seen following the mother, but the male kept out of the
way, preferring the company of the Parrots to that of his wife and
family. Unfortunately some of the chicks got into the water dish,
and one was di-owned, but the other four are thriving well, and have
now wing feathers over an inch long. The male bird is now in constant
attendance on them, and when finely-chopped meat or gi-een vegetables
are tlirown to them he picks up pieces and holds them in liis bill until
the young ones take them from him. Tliey all scratch hke common
fowls, and are fed principally on canary seed. When I was removing
the two imhatched eggs with a spoon tied on a stick, the hen bird
charged at it, with her feathers all distended, like a bantam fowl would
at a strange dog."

The breeding season of the common Brown Quail is chiefly summer
time. Mr. North cites an instance of eggs in the Dobroyde collection
which were taken as late as the 20th March (1867), no doubt a second
brood.

It has been ascertained that in Quail's eggs hatched under a
domestic hen the incubation lasts from fourteen to twenty-one days.
Probably if hatched under the proper parent, the term would be the
longer period.

564. — Syncecus diemenensis, Gould. — (488)

GREATER BROWN QUAIL.

Figure. — Gould. Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 90.

Reference. — Same.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 194 (1865) ; Campbell : Southern
Science Record (1883) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 290
(1889), also Trans. Roy. See, South Australia, vol. xxii.,
p. 164 (1898).

Geographical Distribution. — New South Wales (?), Victoria and
Tasmania.

Nest. — A hollow, lined with grass, &c., in the groimd, in thick herbage
or beside a grass tussock, usually in marshy localities.

Effgs. — Clutch, seven to thirteen ; romid oval in shape ; texture of
shell somewhat coarse ; siu-face glossy ; colour, dull or greenish-yellow
spotted with olive-green. The eggs of the Tasmanian Brown Quail are

^2S NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

usually larger aud more marked than those of the ordiuaiy , BrowB
Quail. Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch: (1) 1-36 x 98,
(2) 1-34 X 1-04, (3) 1-3 x -96, (4) 1-3 x -95, (5) 1-29 x 1'04, (6) 1-29 x 1-04,
(7) 1-29 X 1-01, (8) 1-28 x 1-01, (9) 1-26 x 1-0.

Observations. — Although the excellent " Catalogue " of Birds of the
British Museum has clubbed all our Brown or Swamp Quails luider the
one species, I prefer (and I think collectors generally will uphold me)
to keep the largest (Tasmanian) variety, at all events, separate.

The large and handsome Tasmanian Brown Quail would appear to
be £111 an insular form of the ordinary Brown Quail, and has occasionally
been recorded for Victoria, where it was known to shooters as the
" Silver " Quail.

Gould, who states that from twelve to eighteen eggs are laid, pro-
cured his examples in the swamps below New Norfolk. Mr. Brent
found a fine clutch of thirteen eggs, 15tli October, 1896, which now
fill up a considerable niche in Mr. G. E. Shepherd's collection.

Breeding months, October tO' December and later. Fresh eggs have
been found at the end of March.

565. EXCALFACTORIA CHINENSIS SUb-SpCcies) LINEATA, Scopoli. (491)

E. australis, Gould.

CHESTNUT-BELLIED QUAIL.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 92.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxii., p. 253.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs — Ramsay : Ibis, p. 279 (iS6S) ; Diggles :
Companion Gould's Handbook, p. 119 (1877); Campbell:
Southern Science Record (1883), also Nests and Eggs Austn.
Birds, pi. 2, fig. 491 (1S83).

Geograyhiral Distribution. — Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria
and South Australia; also New Guinea, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Sulu
Islands, Palawan and Philippines.

Ne.it. — A hollow in the ground, Uned, more or less, with grass, &c.,
and sheltered by herbage.

Egyi. — Clutch, four to five, one instance of seven ; round oval in
shape ; texture of shell somewhat coad'se ; surface glossy ; colour, dull
ycllowisli-green or light-olive, occasionally light-green, thickly freckled
with dark olive-green. Dimensions in inches of a clutch ; (1) 1'06 x '76,
(2) 1-05 X -8, (3) 1-02 X -76, (4) 1-0 x -77. (Plate 17.)

Observations. — Tliis beautiful and most interesting little species ranges
throughout Eastern Australia, and extends into Austro-Malayan regions,
where it was first discovered as long ago as about 1776. The female
resembles the little Quail. The male wears a different garb, chiefly

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 729

brown above ; sides of liu;ul, breast, aud fl;uiks arc bluish-grey ; throat
patched with black ;uid white, abdouieu deep chestnut-red, bill black,
feet light browu, eyes hazel. Length, 4^ inches; wing, 2| inches, bill,
7-lG inch; Uirsus, 'l inch.

According to the season many of thei Chestnut-bellied or Least Swamp
Quail (least indeed, for it is the smallest of game birds in the world),
reach their southern hmit, Victoria, during spring and summer, and
breed, retiring noithward again on the approach of winter.

When c;imped in the e;u'ly days in the cUstrict of MordiaUoc, Victoria,
the '' Old Bushman " found the httle Chestnut-bellied Quail somewhat
xincommou. He generally noticed them in pairs or families in the long
grass on the edges of the swamps, often in the water of the swamps
themselves. He occasionally flushed them in the heath-like scrub.
They bred in the district, and if they cUd not remain all the winter, they
left for a veiy short period oul}'.

The birds aie more plentifid in some pai-ts of Queensland.
Mr. Cockeroll infonned Mr. Sylvester Diggles that he had shot fifty
brace in one paddock of 100 acres in a fortnight. They are reckoned
scarce, because the birds, as a rule, sit very close, and wiU almost suffer
themselves to be trodden upon before rising. Mr. Diggles mentions
that the nest has a small nni leading to it, and sometimes the stiiictui'e
is sufficiently strong to allow the eggs to be lifted in it.

In New South Wales, according to Dr. Ramsay (" Ibis," 1868) " the
Least Swamp Quail is foimd tolerably abmidant in the marshy parts about
Botany Bay and South Head, in which situations it breeds freely, reaiing
often three broods in the year. It usually lays five eggs, in shape
resembling those of Synosciis australis (Latham), but much smaller in
size, being 1-1 inches in length by '8 inch in breadth, and, when fresh,
of a pale light green colom*, dotted all over with blackish umber; in
some the gi'oimd colom- is a dirty olive-yellow, others, again, are almost
brown, with black dots. This species is known to oiu: Sydney sportsmen
under the name of the ' King Quail,' and is by most people considered
a rare, bird ; but if its natural haunts be visited it will be foimd plentiful
enough, although hard to ' rise.' It shows preference for the long grass
in low, damp situations, particularly bordering swamps and lagoons.
The nest is like that of the rest of the family, — a few pieces of grass, upon
which the eggs are laid ; but on the whole greatly depending on the
nature of the gi'ound. The breeding season lasts from August to
January ; but in confinement they wiU lay at almost any time of the
year. The young, upon leaving the shell, are of a dusky hue, almost
black."

Breeding season, from September to February, and sometimes the
autumn months, Mr. Harry Barnard has observed that March and
April are the iisual breeding months in Central Queensland for this
Quail.

The young, in down, are tiny creatures, in colour resembling the
mother bird, but with yellowish throats instead of whitish or light
coloured.

730 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ORDER— HEMIPODII: HEMIPODES.

FAMILY— TURNICID^ : HEMIPODES.

566. — TuRNix MACULOSA, Temminck.— (481)
T. melanotus, Gould.

BLACK-BACKED QUAIL.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 84.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxii., p. 546.

Previous Description of Egg. — North : Rec. Austn. Mus,, vol. ii.,
p. 20 (1892).

Geogra-phical Distribution. — Northern Territory, Queensland, New
Soutli Wales, Victoi-ia and South Australia,; also New Guinea and
Celebes.

Nest. — Similax to that of the other members of the genus.

Eggs. — Clutch, four; inclined to pyi-iform, or roundish nuich com-
pressed at one end ; textiu'e of shell fine ; surface glossy ; coloiu', whitish
or pale buff, thickly freckled all over with cinnamon-brown and umber,
interspersed with blotches of dark-brown or black and grey. Dimensions
in inches of a clutch -. (1) -95 x -75, (2) '93 x -73, (3) -92 x -74, (4) -9 x -75.

Observations. — The Black-backed Tm'nix or Quail, although nowhere
plentiful, enjoys a wide range of habitat. It loves such situations as
the rank, marshy places of the northern and eastern coastal scrubs, as
well as islands contiguous to these parts.

For many years I had a pair of eggs, undoubtedly of a Tumix, La my
collection, but referable to none of the eggs then described. On my
visit to Coomooboolaroo, Queensland, 1885, I noticed a pair of exactly
similar eggs in Mr. Geo. Barnard's collection, also without a name.
Subsequently, in the same locality, other eggs were taken and the bird
shot, which proved to be T. maculosa (tnelanotusj.

A fine and full set that graces my cabinet was taken by Mr. S. W.
Jackson in the Clarence River scrub, on the 16lh February this year.
These eggs may be characterised as the darkest coloured of those of the
small Tiu-nixes.

567. — TuRNix MELANOGASTER, Gould. — (479)
BLACK-BREASTED QUAIL.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 81.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxii., p. 550.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record

(1883), also Nests and Kggs -Vustn. Birds, pi. 2, fig. 479 (1883) ;

North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 285 pi. 16, fig. 11 (1S89).

Geographical Distribution. — Queensland and New South Wales.

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 731

Xest. — Merely a slight dcpi-essioii in the ground, in grassed or oijeu
scnib country.

JUgys. — Clutch, three to four; round oval in shape; texture of shell
fine ; surface glossy ; colour-, dii'ty white, finely spotted over the whole
suiiace with light-brown or umber, and moderately marked with large,
bold, roundish blotches of very dai'k bi-own or black, also with a few
bluish-grey blotches. Dimensions in inches of odd examples :
(1) 1-1 X -88, (2) Mx-86.

Observations. — This interesting species of Quail or Tumix appeals
to have a somewhat restricted range in Queensland and part of New
South Wales.

The first specimens of eggs I ever received of the Black-breasted
Quail were from the collection of the late Mr. Geo. Barnard, Coomoo-
boolaroo. They were foiuid in a belt of brigalow scrub on his nui.
Mr. Barnard wrote : " Black-breasted Quail — 12th Decembex-, 1882.
Blacks brought me three fi'esh eggs, found far in the dense scrub. The
bu'd always inhabits the scrub, and is very shy and rare."

Subsequently, when relating to me from his pleasant store of field
incidents he mentioned one regarding the Black-breasted Quail. He
was felling a bottle-tree ( Sterculiu) for fodder for cattle during a
drought. When the topmost branches reached the groiuid they
enveloped a brooding bird that had been sitting closely upon her eggs
all the time, unknown to the tree faUers. Only when the foliage came
so rudely about her was she flushed, which led to the discovery of the
nest with three eggs.

568. — TuRNix VARiA, Latham. — (480 and 480a)
T. scintiUans, Gould.

PAINTED QUAIL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds ol Australia, fol., vol. v., pis. 82 and 83.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxii., p. 551.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ;
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 180 (1865) ; Campbell : Victorian
Naturalist (1889); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 285 (1889).

Geograjjhical Distribution. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania.

Nest. — A shght depression in the grotmd, sometimes lined with a
little grass or fine leaves, and sheltered by a tussock, stone, &c., usually
in an exposed, dry locality.

Eggs. — -Clutch, four ; roundish in shape, more compressed at one
end; texture of shell fine; siirface glossy ; colour, whitish, minutely but
boldly freckled with hght or cinnamon-brown and umber, interspersed
with slightly larger markings of dark purple or black and bluish-grey.

732

!i/ESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Dimensions in inches of proper chitclies (round) ; (1) 1'12 x -95,
(2) 1-12 X -94, (3) 1-1 X -92, (4) 1-08 x -9 ; (pointed); (1) 1-26 x -9,
(2) 1-23 X -9, (3) 1-19 X -89, (4) 1-19 x -88; a West Australian set:
(1) 1-1 x -9, (2) 1-09 X -88, (3) 1-09 x -88. (Plate 18.)

Ohserratidiis. — The Painted Quail has the upper siuia«e rich nifous-
brown, most of the feathers being mai-ked or striped transversely with
chestnut and black. On the wings each feather is spotted with black
and white ; under surface yellowish- white and bill brownish ; eyes,
reddish ; legs and feet yellowish. Total length, 8 inches ; wing, 4 inches ;
bill, I inch ; and tarsus, | inch. The Painted Quail family or Turinxes
possess no hind toeSj hence were first called Hemipodes. This fact
will sometimes aid persons in identifying Quails. Gould gives the
average weight (Tasmanian specimens) of this Quail at five ounces,
remarking that the birds on the mainland were smaller if anything.

The Painted Quail, although fomid in the same places as other
Quails, is more local, and prefers sandy and somewhat sterile tracts.
It has been recorded for most collecting localities throughout Australia,
including Tasmania, and King Island. At the latter place we secured
specimens during the visit of the Field Naturahsts' Club, November, 1887.
" Old Busliman " says although you may occasionally kill an odd one
dm-ing the winter in the Mordialloc district of Victoria, the majority of
them come in September and leave in March.

The Painted Quail iims much upon the groimd, and when on the
wing has a wavering flight ; it is, therefore, somewhat difficult to shoot.
It is reckoned intennediate in size .between the Stubble and Brown
Quails, but it is probably equal in weight (about foui" and a half ounces)
to the latter bird. The call of the Painted Quail is a " coo " like a
pigeon, but twice repeated, and is frequently heard i-ising from the heath
dmnng the pairing season, and sometimes through the night.

I possess distinct recollections of the first pretty set of Painted Quail's
eggs I found as a boy. The locality was in the reserve near the Botanical
Gardens, Melbourne. It was on Boxing Day, 1861 or 1862. I flushed
the bird from her nest, but left the eggs undistiu-bed. I was exceed-
ingly loath to do so, for I feared they would be trodden wider foot
by some picnickers who were arriving.

The last set of eggs I chanced to find was upon the bare ground
(there may have been a semblance of a nest in the shape of a few grass
stalks) in open scnib near the shore of Lake King, Gippsland, in
October, 1881.

I have the reliable, testimony of Mi\ Hairy Bai-nard that in Queens-
land he has noticed several clutches of the Painted Quail just hatching
in April, or when the grass seeds are ripening.

In the light of oui- later knowledge we had better agree in assigning
Speckled Tumix (Turnix scintiUans, Govdd) to tlie synonym of the
Painted Quail. The western bird is a very beautiful species, inhabiting
Houtman's Abrolhos, as well as otlier portions of the west mainland.
It was tolerably abundant on the East and West Wallaby Islands.
Gould describes the bird as being smaller; while its colouiing is much
lighter, more varied and sparkling than its eastern representative — the
ordinary Painted Quail.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 733

The breeding months are from September to February, when two
broods are probably reared. In Tasmania it is stated that the chief
months ai-e October, November and December.

569. — TuRNi.x CASTANONOTA, Gould. — (482)

CHESTNUT-BACKED QUAIL.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 85.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxii., p. 552.

Geographical DUtrihutinn. — North-west Australia, Northern Terri-
tory, and North Queensland.

Nest and Eggs. — Undescribcd.*

Observations. — Little is known of the habits of the Chestnut-backed
Quail, except that it is an inhabitant of the nortliem part of Australia.
Gould transcribes the following note of Gilbert : " This species inhabits
the sides of stony hills in coveys of from fifteen to thirty in number,
which, when distm-bed, seldom rise together, but run along the ground ;
and it is only upon being very closely pvu'sued that they wiU take wing,
and then they merely fly to a short distance. While ranning on the
ground, their heads are thrown up as high as their necks will permit,
and their bodies being carried very erect, a waddling motion is given
to their gait, which is very ludicrous. The stomachs of those dissected
were very muscular, and contained seeds and a large proportion of
pebbles."

570. — TuRNix PYERHOTHORAx, Gould. — (484)
RED-CHESTED QUAIL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 86.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxii., p. 553.

Previous Description of Eggs. — North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 287
(1889).

Geographical Distribution. — Northern Territory, Queensland, New
South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia.

Nest.- — Similar to that of T. velox.

•There is in the collection of Mr. D. Le Souef a pair of eggs from a clutch
of four, found in the Port Darwin district, 21st January, 1S99, which may
possibly be referable to this species. The eggs are remarkably round in form,
sharply nipped off at one end ; texture, firm and fine ; surface, very glossy ;
colour, white, sparingly marked with roundish blotches and spots of sepia,
umber, and dull greyish-blue. Dimensions in inches ; (i) -98 x '84, (2) -95 x "84.

734

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Ee/ffs. — Clutch, four ; inclined to pyriform, or roundish in sliape
shai-ply compressed at one end ; texture of shell fine ; surface almost
without gloss ; colour, yellowish-white, thickly spotted and blotched
with rich brown or chestnut, pui-plish-brown, and slate. Dimensions
in inches of odd examples: (1) -99 x -76, (2) -93 x -76, (3) -91 x -72.

Observations. — Little is known of the Red-chested Quail, except
that its range is across the Continent from north to south. There is
a record that Dr. Ramsay found a nest at Manar, New South Wales,
dui-ing 1864.

Its manner of nidification doubtless resembles that of the Little
Quail.

From a note made by Mr. Hermann Lau while on the Darling
Downs, it appeal's that this species of " Yellow Quail," as it is locally
called, is not very plentiful, only appearing here and there in pairs.
At WaiToo station, during the mowing of some lucerne, a nost con-
taining four eggs was discovered. The eggs were slightly incubated.
Date, September, 1873.

571.— TuRNix VELOX. Gould.— (483)
LITTLE QUAIL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 87.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxii., p. 553.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 185 (1865); North: Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 286 (1S89), also Trans. Roy. See, South Australia,
vol. xxii., p. 159 (1898).

Geographical Distribution. — Australia in general.

Nest. — A slight depression in the ground, scantily lined with grasses,
usually protected by a grass tuft or sheltered in a grain crop.

Eggs. — Clutch, four; round oval in shape; textm-e of shell fine but
firm ; surface sUghtly glossy ; colour, dirty or yellowish-whit 0, thickly
spotted and blotched with imiber, chestnut, and purplish-brown. Other
examples are finer marked and lighter coloured. Dimensions in inches
of a pair: (1) -98 x -72, (2) -95 x -73 ; of a proper clutch: (1) -96 x -7,
(2) -94 X -72, (3) -92 x -7, (4) -89 x -72. (Plate 18.)

Observations. — The Little Quail is somewhat chubby, with a stout,
(lark, horn-coloured bill. Upper surface in general is chestnut-red,
pencilled vrith black and yellowish-white. There is a buify wash on the
throat, chest, and flanks, pas.sing into white on the abdomen. The eyes
and legs are yellowish. Total longlli, 5?, inches; wing. 3 inches; bill,
J inch; tarsus, J inch.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 735

The Little Quail is found or has been recorded throughout Aus-
traha in general.

Gould records it as strictly migratory, but I think observations will
tend to prove that it is merely a wanderer, moving about according to
the seasons. If there is a good season in the interior, tlicn the birds
are scarce near the sea-board; on the contrary, if drought dry up the
interior, then the Little Quails as well as other varieties are plentiful
towards coastal regions. One exceptionally good all-round Quail
season we had in Victoria was 1888, when a sportsman shot, within a
radius of fifty miles of Melboiume, no less than 813 brace of vai-ious
kinds.

The year 1899 was an extraordinary season for Quails in the Mallee
district of Victoria. It is reported that during May, June, and July,
no less than 2,800 birds were shot in one gi-ass paddock of about 1,000
acres. They were chiefly the Little, the Painted, and the Stubble
Quail.

The Little Quail appears to prefer open dry ridges, thinly clothed
with grass, in the inteiior provinces.

The Little Quail is one of the earliest breeders of its family, the
season usually commencing in September and lasting to the close of
the year, i.e., as far as southern parts are concerned, but elsewhere the
breeding time is probably regulated by the season, in the interior for
instance, as the following field note, received from Mr. T. Carter,
Western Australia, proves : " Foimd species of Quail, or Tumix
(probably T. velo.r), laying in great numbers on the Minilya, about
10th Augvist, 1890." Again, at Point Cloates, April and May, 1898,
" the swift-flying Tumix was breeding eveiywhere."

Most persons are mterested in Quail. Subjoined axe Mr. Keartland's
interesting observations of the Little species in the far North-west :
" These birds aie found in North-west Australia throughout the year,
frequenting alike the Flinders and Mitchell grass plains, the spinifex
of the desert, and the tall kangaroo grass along the creek flats, but are
most numerous near the junction of the Fitzroy and Margaret Rivers.
At the latter place they get the credit of eating off the young plants
in the gardens of the settlers as soon as they show above grovmd.
Whether the charge is a just one I cannot say, but I was taken into
the garden by Mr. Harris to see some young melon and cucumber
plants that had just come up. On approaching the cuciunber bed,
three of these birds flew away, and we found that nearly all the plants
had been eaten off. The bird may be driven to this practice by the
scarcity of green food, which they take in conjunction with seeds and
insects. After rain falls they become exceedingly numerous in the
green grass which immediately springs up. As these birds are only
occasional visitors to the southern portions of the Continent, it is
highly probable they are driven south by protracted drought. They
seem to breed nearly all through the year, four eggs being the usual
complement."

7^6 l\/ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.
572. TURNIX LEUCOGASTER, Nolth.

WHITE-BELLIED QUAIL.

Reference. — Ibis, 1895, p. 342.

Previous Description of Eggs. — North : Report Horn Scientific
Expedition, p. 103 (1896).

Geographical Distribution. — West, North-west and Centi-al Aus-
tralia.

Nest. — Similar to that of T. velox.

Eggs. — Number and description similar to those of T . rehir.

Ohservations. — The small Wliite-bellicd Qviail was one of the orni-
thological discoveries of the Horn Expedition to Central AustraUa.
Mr. North, who described the new bird, considers it to be allied to
T . vehir and T . jji/rrliotliorar, but pointed out that the almost unifonn
wliite under-siu'face serves to distinguish it from either, likewise from
any member of the genus yet cUscovered in Australia.

But it is somewhat strange that Mr. North should risk his repu-
tation as a cautious ornithologist in describing a new bird from a single
skin of such a wandering species as a Quail ! He now canchdly admits
that T. leucogaster " may prove to be only a very bleached young
bird " of T. velox, wlule other authorities have no doubt it is. Therefore
the following field notes of Mr. Kcartland, who accompanied the
Expedition (Horn's), may be read with interest as referable to either
variety : — " Great numbers of these birds were found throughout the
grass country north of Charlotte Waters. At Illamm-ta, on 30th May,
a clutch of hard-set eggs was found, and afterwards yoimg birds were
frequently picked up. At Petermann Creek, half-grown young ones
ran about oiu- camp. Wherever grass was plentiful, particularly near
Heavitree Gap and Missionary Plain, they were also numerous. Whilst
crossing the latter country, my attention was called to a dingo hunting
in the gi'ass Uke a setter dog. Presently he made a decided set, and
then suddenly springing forward, flushed a brace of these birds, one of
which he caught in liis mouth and soon swallowed. He tiien started
after the second one, and as he was approacliing his bird, hunting
keenly, he permitted me to get near enough to stop his Quail-hunting.
He was a fine male dingo, but black in colour."

Again, with the Calvert Expedition, two years afterwards,
Mr. Kcartland writes : " Throughout the whole of the journey from
Cue to Derby these birds were noted. Whether we traversed the
dense kangaroo grass near the creeks, the scattered lierbage in the
timbered coimtry, or the arid spinifcx flats between the sandhills, they
rose beside our track nearly every day. In some places they were so
numerous that they were flushed every fifty yards. On one occasion,
soon after daybreak, I counted no less than fifteen birds all in sight
at ono time feeding on a patch of very short spinifex. Their eggs or

A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 737

young were frequently found from early in July until March. They
were often found at a great distance from water; on several occasions,
however, I disturbed them whilst diinking. "

573. — Pedionomus torquatus, Gould. — (485)
PLAIN WANDERER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. v., pi. 80.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxii., p. 554.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Scie_nce Record

(1883), also Nests and Eggs .\ustn. Birds, pi. 2, fig. 485 (1SS3) ;

North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 288, pi. 16, fig. 12 (1S89).

Geographical DUtrihution. — New South Wales, Victoria, and South
Austraha.

Nest. — Merely a depression in tlie gi-ound, sometimes sheltered by
grass tufts, usually on open plains.

Eggn. — Clutch, foiu' to five ; pyriform, sharply nipped off at one end,
occasionally -with an elongated neck, which gives quite a pear-shaped
appearance; texture fine, but firm and strong; surface glossy; coloiu-,
yellowish or greenish- white, ^potted and finely blotched, thickest on
the apex, with oHve and dull-grey. Wlien the shells are empty and
are inibbed against each other, the sound caused resembles that pro-
duced by the grating of fine pieces of china-ware. Average dimensions
in inches of a large-sized set of three; 1-33 xl'O; odd examples:
(1) 1-28 X -92, (2) 1-27 x -9. (Plate 18.)

Observations. — The collared Plain Wanderer, although a unique
species, is closely allied to the Tumixes, from which birds, however, it
differs in possessing a hind-toe. As Gould remarks, the structure of
this singular bird is admirably adapted for inhabiting the extensive
and arid plains of the central portions of AustraUa.

Tlie bird may be at once distinguished from the other Quail by
the broad white ring round its neck, spotted with black, and by its
small hind toe ; the rest of the plumage is reddish-brown. The yellow
legs are comparatively long, while its wing power is feeble. Length,
7 inches ; wing, 3| inches ; bill, j inch ; tarsus, ^ inch.

Occasionally the birds \'isit Victoria and South Austraha. In the
latter place, according to Gould, they appear in June, disappearing
about January. On accoimt of their feeble flight powers they are often
caught by sportsmen's dogs. Not many years ago I heard of a bird
being caught in the vicinity of the St. Kilda cemetery ; and more
recently a friend's dog caught one near Williamstown. Tlie same
gentleman observed a nest of the Plain Wanderer containing the
peculiarly pointed eggs, on the Keilor Plains.
47

738

NESTS AA'D EGGS OF AVSTHALIAN BIRDS.

Although only recorded in 1889 by Mr. North, the next authenti-
cated egg was taken at Springfield, near Goulbuni, New South Wales,
December, 1875. It is in the Dobroyde collection.

Although only recorded recently (1889) by Mr. North, the next
authenticated egg was taken at Springfield, near Goulburn, New
South Wales, December, 1875. It is in the Dobroyde collection.

The eggs that now grace my cabinet were obtained tlu'ovigh the
kindness of Mr. Beazley (then in the Adelaide Museum). The speci-
mens were taken northward, eight miles from Adelaide, on August
20th, 1887, by Mr. S. Wesdoni, who flushed and shot the female parent.
The nest, which contained five eggs, was situated at the side of a large
tuft of grass on the rise of a hill. A previous clutch was found in the
same neighbom-hood earlier in the month.

The breeding season may be said to be included in the months from
August to December.

NESTS Ai\D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 739

ORDER— FULICARI^E.

FAxMILY— RALLID^ ; RAILS.

574.— Hypot^enidia brachypus, Swaiuson. — (571)

SLATE-BREASTED (LEWIN) RAIL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 77.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. 37.
Previous Des.riplions of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
(1888); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 329 (1889).

Geographical Distribution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, South and West AustraUa, and Tasmania ; also New Zealand.

Xe-^'t. — Composed of fine grass and rushes, and situated in a swamp
among thick rashes, which are usually drawn together above, so as to
form a covering. There is a staging or landing leading to the nest,
which is variously placed from six inches to three feet above the water.

Eggs. — Clutch, foiu- to six, usually five ; oval or round oval
in form ; texture of shell fine ; surface glossy ; coloiu-, hght-
pink or pinkish-white, blotched and splashed with pinki.sh-red and
pm-ple. Dimensions in inches of a set of three: (1) 1'41 x r03,
(2) 1-38 xM, (3) 1-37 X 1-0.

Observations. — This interesting Rail does not enjoy stich a wide
range as its larger compeer, the Pectoral Rail, being confined chiefly
to the southern parts of Australia and Tasmania, where it is especially
abundant in low swampy sitviations.

Having received authenticated eggs of this pretty Rail from differ-
ent quarters in 1888, I took the opportimity of re-describing them,
for in none could I discern the " pale-olive " gi'ound colour mentioned
in Gould and elsewhere, a colour probably referable to the egg of one
of the Crakes — a pardonable mistake, because the identity of the parent
would be difficult, when both Crakes and Rails often frequent the same
swampy situation.

Mr. A. E. Brent, from whom I received two particularly fine seta
first acquainted me with the fact of the singular staging or ladder
leading from the nest to the water, down which, he says, " the birds
when disturbed from the nest travel hke Ughtning, disappearing under
water."

Another time Mr. Brent states : " Since I vrrote to you, in com-
pany with Mr. Malcolm W. Harrison, sub-inspector of stock,
I discovered a nest of this bird containing five eggs. Mr. Harrison,
not having taken any of these eggs, was ciuious to see the bird, so we

74-0

NESTS AXD EGGS OF ArS2-7!ALIAN BINDS.

retired for a few minutes to allow the bird to retuni ; then I told him
to stand guard to identify the bird as she left the uest. while I pro-
ceeded to flush her. Looking into the tussock, I could see her on the
nest, and, making a spring, with both hands I captured her."

The number of eggs in completed clutches found by Mr. Brent is
respectively 5, 5, 5, 5, 4. 4. and 4.

In the following note, kindly sent to me, Mr. Brent contrasts the
nest-s of the Slat^?-breasted (Lewin) Rail and of the Spotted Crake :
" Both Spotted Crake and Lewin Rail have the stage or track leading
up to the nest; but much larger in the latter, on account of the great
height of some of the positions from the ground, as compared with
those of the Crake, wliich are low down. I have found the nest of the
Rail as high as three feet from the ground, whereas I have never found
the other more than one foot high. The nest of the Rail is more
compact, rounder and deeper, with the fine gra.ss and rushes overhead
laced together and formed into a kind of dome-shaped basket-work
covering. I should like to di-aw youi- attention to the fact that tliis
little bit of workmansliip does not occur imtil such time as the bird is
sitting, when she seems to amuse herself by reaching up her long neck
and bill, and pulling the rushes down. Tlie nest of the Ci-ake is not
like the Rail's, being composed of di-v bits of rushes and aquatic weeds
carelessly made, with a shght attempt at an overhead covering. Wlien
sitting, the nest-stage and eggs are mostly plastered \vith a thick
coating of mud, in fact, you cannot tell if the latter are eggs or stones,
I find I have omitted to sav the nest of the Rail is composed of fine
band-grass (diy), beautifully put together, with a track of the same
material, which has the appearance of being gathered up by the end
and carried in as far as the nest by the bird, where the end is tucked
in, and the remaining part, which is generally long, left lying where
the bird entered — by tliis means the track is fonned. In the case of
the Crake, she carries nothing for her stage, but simply makes use of
the rushes and gi-ass at hand, and with her fine long toes she must
tread it into position. "

Breeding months September to December.

575. — Hypot-enidia philippinensis, Linnseus. — (570)
PECTORAL RAIL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 76.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. 39.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Oould ; Birds of Australia (184S) .
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 335 (1865) ; Hutton : Trans. New
Zealand In.^titute, vol. iii., p. iii (1S71); BuUer : Birds of
New Zealand (187^), vol. ii., p. qq (iSSS) : North : .\ustn. Mus.
Cat., p. 32S (1889)"; North : Trans. Rov. .<oc.. South .Vustralia,
vol, xxii., p. 164 (1898).

Geographical Distribution. — Australia in general and Tasmania,

NESTS A.VD EGGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 741

also New Zealand, Lord Howe, Norfolk, and other Pacific Islands, and
throughout the Austro-Malayan Islands to ihc Philippines.

Xest. — A thick ply of dry gi-ass principally and leaves, placed on
the giound in a slight hollow, fom- or five inches across, in herbage or
by a tussock of grass, usually in tiie vicinity of water.

Eggs. — Clutch, five to eight usually, maximum twelve ; round oval
in shape ; textm-e of shell fine ; surface slightly glossy ; colour, wann
or pinkish-wliite, boldly but sparingly marked with roundish blotches
of rich reddish-brown, puiiDle, and dull purplish-gi-ey. Dimensions in
inches of a clutch: (1) 1-49 x Ml, (2) 147 x M, (3) 147 xM,
(4) 1-45 X 1-08, (5) 1-44 x 1-09, (6) 1-4 x 1-03, (7) 1-38 x 1-06. (Plate 18.)

Ohservatiom. — Few birds of its kind enjoy a wider range than the
Landrail, or Pectoral Eail, and not only has it tlie run of marshy
tracts and moist humid places of Australia and Tasmania, but is found
on many other islands besides.

What with the increase of foxes, domestic wild cats, and other
vermin, I do not think this favourite bird is so often seen as in former
years, in Victoria, at all events.

Gould regarded it as a summer visitant to the southern parts of
Australia, arriving in August and departing in Fcbniai-y. This cannot
be a general rale, because I heard in 1895 of a nest containing four
undoubted Landrail's eggs having been found near Heidelberg, 4th
July.

I had a curious experience in connection with the last Landrail's eggs
I took. The nest was concealed in a tuft of grass near the River MuiTay,
and contained a clutch of seven eggs, from which the bird was flushed. It
was the usual sr.ltry weather at the beginning of December (1890), and
I also " flushed " a snake near, wliich was killed, tossed into the river,
and went floating down stream with its yellowish stomach uppermost.
The same evenmg I was blowing the eggs by the verandah at
Mr. G. H. Morton's house. The children were watching what to them
was an interesting operation, when suddenly a tiger snake wriggled
up between us. Without dropping the precious egg I had in hand,
I seized a short stick at my .side and despatched the reptile while it
was making towards the verandah. It measured one inch short of
four feet.

I possess two notes on the Pectoral Rail from different parts of
Austraha. One is from Yorke Peninsula, South Australia, written by
Mr. James McDougall, who says : " The Pectoral Rail breeds every year
on Trowbridge Islands, as I am infonned by the lighthouse keepers,
who see the young and old feeding at dawn and dusk. I have seen
the birds but not the eggs, which number seven or eight. The birds
arrive at the end of August, and leave in February. "

The other is from Darling Downs, Queensland, by Mr. H. Lau, who
wi-ites : " This bird makes no nest, but, like the Emu, simply treads
down a little place among the long grass near water. This spot withers

742

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

in a short time, and on it ai-e deposited five eggs. Found everywhere
in Queensland. Took eggs near Mount Mclntyre watershed, 1880."

The usual breeding months are from September to December, but
during the Calvert Expedition in the North-west, two nests contam-
ing hard set clutches were observed in February near the junction of
the Fitzroy and Margaret Rivers.

576. EULABEORNIS CASTANEIVENTRIS, Gould. (572)

CHESTNUT-BELLIED RAIL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 78.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. 49.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 338 (1S65).

Gengraphical Dlstrihution. — Northern Territory and North Queens-
land ; also the Aru Islands.

Ned. — Not described.

Eyrj^. — Clutch, — ; rather lengthened in form, swollen about the
upper quarter and somewhat pointed at either end ; texture of shell
strong and coarse ; surface glossy ; colour, warm-white, sparingly marked
with roundish blotches and spots of chestnut and dull pui-jjlish-brown .
Dimensions in inches : 2-0 x 1-4 (Nehrkom collection) ; according to
Gould : 212 X 162. In shape these eggs are more of the Gallinule type.

Observations. — This fine, large, and singular species of Rail frequents
the low muddy shores and mangrove swamps of the northern coast.

Gould received his original specimen from Rear-Admiral Stokes,
who was siu'veying in H.M.S. " Beagle " at that time in the Gulf of
Cariientaria.

Gould some time previously had received the eggs of this species
from Port Essington (probably Gilbert's collecting), but owing to its
extreme shyness the bird could never be obtained. It runs with extra-
ordinary fleetness, taking alarm the instant the vicinity of its liabitat
is invaded, and vanishing amongst the dense herbage and mangroves.

577. — Rallina TRiroi.oH, Gray.
RED-NECKED RAIL.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol.,supp., pi. 78.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. 79.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Z00I. Soc, p. 603
(1875); North: Austn. Mus. Cat', pi. 17, fig. 5 (18S9),

Ortu/rfiphicaJ Distrihutinn. — North Queensland; also Now Guinea,
Mysol, Waigiou. Aru Islands, &c.

A£SrS AND EGGS Ob AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. ■j ^-^

Xest. — -Composed of grass and a lew leaves, and hidden among
thick debris at the foot of a tree in dense scrub (liamsay). Built in
the base of a thick clump of lawj-er (Calamus) canes; somewhat like a
Shiikc Thiiish's nest, and about a foot high.

E(j(js. — Clutch, four to seven ; elliptical in shape, occasionally some
examples are more compressed at one end ; textui'e of shell fine ;
sui-facc glossy ; colour, dull-white, fairly blotched and spotted, particu-
larly about the larger end, with i-ufous or reddish-brown and pui'ple.
Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch: (1) 1-52 x 1-06, (2) 145 x Tl,
(3) 1-43 X 1-07, (4) 1-38 X 1-09; of a larger-sized pair: (1) 1-53 x 1-14,
(2) 1-5 X 1-15.

Observations. — -This elegant Rail, conspicuous for its rusty-red liead
and neck, is found in Northern Queensland and some of the islands
beyond. Mr. Cockerell, who first collected the bird from a dry scnib
that fringed a small creek in the neighbourhood of Somerset, Cape
York, says he found the eggs, which were wliite. It is said that the
native name of tliis Rail is " Tangala, from a peculiar sound the bird
utters at night.

Dr. Ramsay states : " I found this fine species of Rail by no means
rare in the dense scrubs which fringe the rivers and creeks of the coast
and range near Rockingham Bay ; but although tolerably plentiful,
they are always vei-y difficult to obtain, on account of the nature of
the localities they frequent and their retiring disposition. They are
seldom to be seen without Iving in wait for them, and not always then
can one obtain a shot, except, perhaps, at such close quarters as would
entirely destroy them. They move about more in the evenings and
early mom, and at night may be heard calling to one another as they
traverse the dense masses of rank vegetation, wliich abound in those
districts. I never met with them out of these scrubs, although thick,
swampy gi-ass-beds close bv were frequented by allied species. They
seem very local in their habits, a pair frequenting the same spot for
many months or perhaps the whole year round, and breeding near the
same place year after year ; the young soon begin to take care of them-
selves, and leave the parents before they are well able to fly. I found
them some four or five months old in pairs. The note resembles a hoarse
croak quickly repeated in a somewhat moiu'nful tone, and a quick
' cluck, cluck ' when come upon suddenly. I was not fortunate enough
to find the nest and eggs myself, but shortly after I left the Herbert
River, I received a fine set of these eggs from Inspector Robert
Johnstone, to whom the bird is well known, and who assures me that
after finding the nest with eggs he left them until he had twice seen the
bird sitting thereon, and that he might be perfectly sure there could
be no mistake as to their identity."

I have received the eggs of this splendid Rail taken in New Guinea
as well as from the mainland by Mr. W. Saycr, who found a chitch of
six near the Russell River, when on a botanical tour to Mount Bellen-
den-Ker for Baron von Mueller, 1886. Other eggs were taken in the
Cooktown district at the end of January (1895). also white eggs, as

744

NESTS AND EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

mentioned by Mr. CockereU, attributed to a Rail ; whether this Rail
or some other bird has yet to be proved. A set of three of these white
eggs may be seen in the collection of Mr. D. Le Souef. They resemble
in shape and size those of the Red-nocked Rail, minus the markings,
but are apparently stouter in the shell and have more gloss on the
surface.

From very strong circumstantial evidence Mr. Broadbent believes
the white eggs are Red-necked Rail's. In a communication to me he
has kindly furnished the following interesting field notes ; —

" I left Cardwell about the first week in January, on a collecting
trip, for the head of the Murray River, thirty miles from Cardwell
and ten miles from the Bellenden Plains, just where the mountains
come down to the banks of the river — a splendid place for you about
October — all the country to yoiu'self.

" Of course, I was collecting birds, insects, reptiles, and fish, and
eggs when I came across them.

" My tent was near the river scrub, about two bundled yards away,
in the gi-ass. But close to my tent, about fifty yards distant,
was a little creek with scrub very tliick with a great quantity of ferns
and uudergi-owth. At night I often heard the call of the Scnib Rail,
and sometimes on very dark nights they would come around the tent,
but too dark to shoot. In the morning I frequently heard them in
the scnib calhng to each other, when I endeavoiu'ed to get them.
Several mornings I got up at dawn and crawled into the scnib amongst
the ferns, but unfortunately I could not see the birds — too dense and
dark. However, one morning, when crawUng as usual in the ferns,
I nearly broke two beautiful white eggs laid on the gi^ound amongst
the ferns in a Uttlc circular ba.sin Hned with a few bits of leaves and
small pieces of dead sticks, just scrub rubbish. The eggs were quite
warm. I shot the female just as she was beginning to sit, judging by
her breast feathers. Afterwards I shot the male about the middle of
January. I hunted these scrubs for six weeks afterwards and could
attribute the eggs to no other bu-d."

578. — Crex ceex, Linnaeu:
CORN CRAKE.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Great Britain, vol. iv., pi. 87.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus.,vol. xxiii., p. 82.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Various.

Gent/ra pliicol Di.'itri/iiitidii. — Now South Wales (accidental); also
Asia and Europe, migrating to winter in Africa, sometimes as far
south as the Cape.

Nr.<<t. — A mere depression in the ground, lined with a few straws,
and usually situated in a corn or clover field or meadow (Butler).

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

745

Ef/f/s. — Clutch, eight to twelve ; oval in shape, compressed at one
end ; texture of shell fine ; surface glossy ; colour, dull or light greyish-
white, spotted and marked, chiefly in a longitudinal direction, with
chestnut and purplish-brown of dificrent shades. Dimensions in inches
of a set of three : (1) 1-46 x 1-02, (2) 144 x 1-07, (3) 1-44 x 10. These
eggs most resemble those of the Pectoral Rail.

Observation.^. — It is somewhat strange that a single specimen of
the common Landrail, or Corn Crake of Eui'ope, should have been
found near Sydney. Date, June, 1893. These birds are known to
migrate southwai-d in winter from Eiu-ope and parts of Asia to Africa.
Instead of keeping to the right, the "wanderer under notice may have
kept too much to the left, got " bushed " in Australia, and thus made
a record by being added to the avi-fauna of that covmti-y.

579. — PoEZANA FLUMiNEA, Gould. — (573)
SPOTTED CRAKE.

Figure. — Gould : Birdi of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 79.
Keference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. 101.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
(18S9) ; Xlorgan : Trans. Roy. Soc, South -Australia, vol. xxii.,
p. 193 (189S).

Geographical Distribution. — Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria,
South Australia and Tasmania.

Xest. — Open, somewhat flat ; composed of green weeds, usually wet,
lined with soft grass and generally placed low by the side of a thick
tussock of grass or chunp of rushes growing in water of swampy locaUties.
There is a stage or track leading to the nest.

Ef/g.s. — Clutch, foiu- to five; round oval in form; texture of shell
fine; siuiace glossy; colovu-, greyish or brownish-olive, blotched and
spotted, particularly alxiut the larger end, with red, and chiefly rich
piu-plish-brown of various shades. Dimensions of a clutch from
Tasmania: (1) 1-28 x -9, (2) 1-25 x -92, (3) 1-24 x -9, (4) 1-22 x -9.
(Plate 18.) A set taken in South Queensland has a Ughter ground-
colour— pale-olive — and is moderately marked with rounchsh blotches
and spots of dull-brown and purplish-brown. Dimensions : (1) 1'28 x '91,
(2) 1-19 X -87, (3) M7 x -89, (4) 1-19 x -88.

Observation.^. — The splendid little Spotted Crake frequents the thick
herbage and reed-beds of swamps and mai'shes in eastern localities from
Queensland down to South Australia, including Tasmania- — one of its
strongholds.

In 1889 I was indebted to Mr. E. D. Atkinson for the pleasiu'e of
examining and first describing fi'om his collection a set of these rare
and most interesting eggs, which were taken by Mr. G. K. Hinsby.

746

NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTKALIAN BIRDS.

In describing the eggs of the Slate-breasted Rail (Hypotcenidia
brachypusj, the previous year, I stated that Goiild had in en'or probably
described the eggs of one of the Porzance for those of the Riiil, au ciTor
easily made, considering the similar habits of both birds. There is no
room to doubt now that the Spotted Crake's eggs were supposed by the
great author to be those of the Rail. I am pleased for the sake of
other collector, as well as myself, that this matter has been cleared
up, and, moreover, has been amply substantiated tlu'ough the good and
enthusiastic services of Mr. A. E. Brent.

Like most other Crakes, the Spotted keeps well witlun tlie confines
of the dense herbage of its swampy retreat. Hence, as Gould from
experience truly says, it is seldom seen unless the greatest trouble and
labour are expended to hunt it out of its hiding place. Therefore, all
the more credit is due to Mr. A. E. Brent, who, about the first week
hi November one season, aided by a favoimte Gordon setter, tracked
these birds, and was vei-y successful in finding thi-ee of their nests in
the reedy lagoons, formerly the ovei-flow of the Derwent River, Tasmania.
Two nests contained each four- eggs, the other five. The nests were
placed among bimches of inishes, partly on the water, and constiiicted of
aquatic weeds for a foundation, and lined with soft band grass, which
was damp. As in the case of the Slate-breasted Rail, a staging or track
led up from the water to the nest.

In other communications received from Mr. Brent he has furnished
some valuable and cimous facts concerning Spotted Ci'akes. He writes :
" In company with Mr. Han-ison and Mr. Arthiu- Butler, I went to the
marshes, and had not been long at work when Mr. Haiiison had the
good fortune to flush a bird from her nest containing four eggs. Round
the nest the water was just beginning to diy, leaving a thick, sticky
mud, with which the eggs were completely covered, hiding colom-, spots,

and eveiything The enca.sement of mud on the Crake's

eggs is easily explained. The season being veiy dry, tlie water soaked
away, leaving a thick mud for some distance round the nest, through
which the birds had to wade, and, naturally enough, canned a certain
amount on their feet each time they visited the nest. A small channel
was plainly visible in the mud, through the birds keeping to the one
track, which led to the discovei-y of tlie nest.

" Since, I have taken two more nests of the Spotted Crake. The
first contained five eggs, the last six eggs ; and I took also two Lewin's
Rails, each containing five eggs. In all these clutches there have been
odd eggs — a pair either devoid of coloiu-ing or larger, or very much smaller
in size, as the case may be. But the general rule is, in a clutch of five
a pair is large, while three match each otlier in every way. "

Mr. Brent and companions, diu'ing tlie season, took no less than
seventeen eggs of the Spotted Crake, representing clul<hes of 6, 5, 4, and
2 respectively. In October (beginning), 1896, he himself took three
nests of the Spotted Crake with 3, 4, and 5 eggs respectively.

A set of eggs in my collection, taken at Slab Crock, Queensland,
season 1885, have a lighter ground-colour, but in other respects ai'e
similar to the Tasmauiau eggs. In tliis instance the nest was foiuid
among water-lilies and laishes, and was composed of dead nishes in a wet
state.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 747

Dr. A. M. Morgan, South Australia, mentions a nest containing five
eggs that was taken from a bush growing in the water of a swamp near
Farina. Date, 18th August, 1898.

580. — PoEZANA PALusTRis, Gould — (574)
LITTLE CRAKE.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 80.

Reference.— Cai. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. 109.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (184S) ,

also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 341 (1865) ; Ramsay : Proc. Linn.

Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. vii., p. 56. pl- 3. fig- H (18S2).

Geographical Distrihution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, South and West Australia and Tasmania.

Xest. — Slightly concave on top ; composed of poi-tions of small, round
or flat (according to the species) i-ushes or other aquatic plants, and
concealed in i-ushes, &c., in shallow water, or on the mud of swamps.
Dimensions over all, about 4 inches by 6 inches in lieight ; egg cavity,
about I inch deep. There are usually two small (back and front)
entrances to the nest, through the clump of herbage containing the nest.

Egijs. — Clutch, four to eight ; oval in shape ; texture of shell fine ;
surface glossy ; colour, brownish-olive, fairly but faiutly mottled over
the whole surface with a darker shade of the same colour. Dimensions
in inches of a clutch: (1) 1-12 x '75, (2) 1-11 x -77, (3) 1-1 x -77,
(4) 1-0 X -76. (Plate 19.)

Observations. — The rank vegetation of swamps and similar localities
difficult to explore is the safe liome of the Little Crake, which is an
inhabitant chiefly of the southern portion of AustraUa (including Tas-
mania), ranging up to Qvieensland on the east coast. It is said to be
more common in Tasmania than on the mainland. I used to see odd
birds skipping over the water of the Caulfield Swamp, near Melbounie,
before mimicipal stupidity reclaimed, or rather destroyed, that natm-al
retreat for water-fowl, which could have been beautified and made a
permanent home and breeding reserve for many of the feathered tribe.

Gould was indebted to the Rev. T. J. Ewing, D.D., Tasmania, for the
nest and eggs of the Little Water Crake, which he (Gould) accurately
described.

I have received eggs from Western Port; while Mr. J. G. Gray, of
Kentucky, Riverina, sent me a valuable note with an egg for identifica-
tion, referring to a nest containing eight eggs that had been discovered
by a famier's son. Dry mshes formed tlie bed of the nest, over wliich
green nishes were bent as if to afford concealment as well as protection
from the weather. Season 1893. The season following, Mr. G. A.

7^8 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Keartland showed me eggs from a clutch of six, taken on King Island.

Breeding mouths, October to December or Januaiy.

The nest of the Little Water Crake that forms the subject of my
illustration was pointed out to me by Mr. G. E. Shepherd, near Somer-
ville, from which he took a set of four eggs, 19th November, 1896. It
was situated in a little swamp, which was about knee-deep, and sun-ounded
by tea-tree (Melaleuca J, in blossom. The nest itself was in the middle
of a tall tussock of " sword-gi-ass.' The nest was built up about six
inches from the water, the sui'face was fom- inches across the tojs, which
was slightly (about i inch) concave. It was composed of dead portions
of rushes lined with the same material, only in smaller and softer pieces.
There was a little entrance leading either way tlu'ough the tussock from
the nest. Of coiu-se the tussock had to be somewhat opened out to take
the photograph (see illustration).

581. — PoRZANA TABUENsis, GmeHn. — (575)
SPOTLESS CRAKE.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. Sz.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. in.

Previous Descriplions of Eggs. — Potts : Trans. New Zealand Inst.,
vol. vi., p. 151 (1874) ; Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883), and Nests and Kggs .\ustn. Birds, pi. 2, fig. 575 (1883),
also Victorian Naturalist (1889) ; Buller ; Birds of New
Zealand, vol. ii., p. 102 (1888) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat.,
app. (1890).

Geographical DixtrUmfii)n. — Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria,
South and West Australia and Tasmania ; also New Zealand, many
islands in Oceania and the Philippines.

.Yes*. — Composed of soft, diy grass, and placed on the gi'ound ; usually
sheltered by a thick, drooping grass tussock. near water, svich as a stream.

Eggx. — Clutch, four, probably more; clliptically inclined in fonn ;
texture of shell fine ; surface glossy ; colour, dirty or grcyish-whitc;,
somewhat lightly mottled all over with dull rufous or chestnut.
Dimensions in inches of odd examples: (1) r2 x -84, (2) 1-15 x -9.
(Plate 19.)

OhxervatiijiiH. — This beautiful little Rail, with pink eyes, although
rare, is widely dispersed, being found in its peculiar habitat lliroughout
Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand, &c.

It was observed lately in a reedy swamp near Cheltenham, Victoria,
and was in years gone by a frequenter of the Cari-um Camim Swamp, a
little further south.

The following is a picture by Mr, G. E. Sluj)li('rd, Somer\'illc, of
the Spotless or Tabuan Crake at home ; — " About eighteen years ago I

NEST OF THE LITTLE CKAKE.

From a Photo by the Author.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

749

first saw this rare and beautiful bird, and 1 shall never forget it. I had
made my way into the middle of a lagoon about ten acres in extent, and
was sitting well out of sight among tall reeds ten or twelve feet high,
waiting for ducks to alight upon a small sheet of open water ; time, about
simset. Suddenly a Tabuan Water Crake made its appearance from
among the reeds, having not the slightest idea of my presence (for I, had
been sitting motionless for some time), and gave me an opportunity of
observing it feeding on insects, apparently found on the siuface of the
water, upon which it moved with the greatest ease, finding plenty of
footing upon the hair-like water grasses, &c., which float on the surface.
I often thought of the bird, and longed to see another with a view
to procuring it and having it identified. Twelve years elapsed,
during which time 1 made lepeated attempts to get a specimen, but
without success, till one morning in October, soon after daylight, when
passing- another lagoon, I heard a sound, and on nearer approach felt
certain it was some bird among the tall reeds and bulnishes. Fortunately
a neighboviring tree, up which I scrambled, afl'orded me a good outlook,
and after sitting veiy quietly for something like twenty minutes or .so,
the noise was repeated and I saw for the second time the Tabuan Crake,
for an instant only, at an opening in the rashes. I subsequently
secured a fine specimen, shooting it fi'om the same tree-top."

Gould did not succeed in finding a nest ; but, as he conjectui'ed, the
eggs differ from those of the typical Porzance, and also from those of the
true Rails.

The late Mr. T. H. Potts described, an egg of this Crake from a salt
marsh near Invercargill, New Zealand, 1874.

When I described and figured my first eggs of this species, nine years
afterwards — and, ciu'iously enough, from the same locality, — I was not
aware of Mr. Potts's previous desciiption. A second example I received
from Tasmania through Mr. A. E. Brent, who also kindly supplied a
description of the nest, which was fovmd during November. In the
appendix to " Catalogue " of Nests and Eggs of Australian Museum
(1890), a nest and single <^g^, found b}- Dr. Metcalfe on Norfolk Island,
are described.

582. — PoLioLiMNAS CINEREU8, Vieillot. — (576)
Erythra quadristrigata, Horsfield.

WHITE-BROWED CRAKE.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 8i.

Re-jerence. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. 130.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 388
(1868); Kiitter; Cabanis' Journal fiir Ornithologie (1S84-6) ;
Campbell : Victorian Naturalist (1889) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., pi. 16, fig. 7 (1889).

Gfographical Disti-ihution. — Northern Territory and Queensland;
also the majority of the Pacific Islands, throughout the Austro-Malayan
Archipelago and Philippines to the Malayan Peninsula.

;5o

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTEALIAN BIRDS.

jVenf. — Somewhat shallow, constructed of portions of rushes and
covered with fine grass, and situated on the gi'ouud in swamp}* situations.
Dimensions, about 2^ inches across by 1§ inches deep inside.

Eggs. — Clutch, two to four ; elliptical in shape ; texture of shell
fine ; surface slightly glossy ; colour, greyish-white, finely blotched and
spotted all over with nifous-brown or chestnut and dull purplish-brown.
Dimensions in inches of two odd examples (long ellipse) : 1'22 x '86 ;
(short ellipse) : 1-2 x '9. Two in the collection of Mr. S. W. Jackson,
taken diuing the season 1897-8, near the Nicholson River, North
Queensland, are stout ovals, and measm-e (1) 1-14 x -87, (2) 1-1 x -88.

Observations. — -The White-bi'owed Crake has an Austro-Malayan
habitat, in addition to being found in the north and north-east parts of
Australia. Gilbert first observed it frequenting the mangi-ove quag-
mires of Port Dai^win district, where it was apparentlv a somewhat
confiding bird. On the approach of an intruder it will frequently run
up a branch, turn round, gaze at him, and utter a very singular, loud and
chattering " Cutche-cutche." Occasionally several may be heard in
chorus, as if attempting to excel each other in noise.

It is by no means difficult to obtain specimens of the bird, continues
Gilbert, except when the water is too deep to admit of wading round
the thick clumps of stilted mangrove roots.

Dui-ing a toiu- in the Rockingham Bay di.strict, 1867, Mr. E. Spalding,
who accompanied Dr. Ramsay, took an egg of this species from the
oviduct of a bird, which was the specimen the Doctor took his description
from.

My specimens were received through the goodness of the late
Dr. Kiitter, of Germany, who likewise thoughtfully forwarded me extra
pages of " Cabanis' JoiuTial fiir Oniithologio " (1884-6), containing his
description of examples of nests and eggs of the White-browed Crake,
taken in Borneo. Two nests were found on the ground, 11th and 14th
April, 1883, with two and foiu" eggs respectively, slightly incubated.
One nest was somewhat shallow, constructed of the bottom part of rushes,
and covered with fine gi'asses. The other was, according to the descrip-
tion given by the collector, built of the leaves of rice-straw.

Gould wrote : " As the nest and eggs of this species have not yet been
discovered, they foiTn some of the desidcrdta to which I would call the
attention of the rising ornithologists of Australia, and I can a.ssure them
that the study of the eggs will gi-eatly a.ssist them in assigiiing the birds
to which they belong to their proper genus."

It is of great interest and importance tO' collectore that the eggs of
the four species of Crakes inhabiting Australia are now known.

The eggs of the Little Crake and the Tabuan or Spotless Crake
luidoubtedly appear to be typical of the tnie Pnr:nii(e, as contrasted with
the Spotted Crake and the Wliitc-browcd bird, whicli appear oologically
difTcrent — or. as Dr. Kiitter remaiks, with reference to the last-named,
tliey approach in their type those of the GaUinulince, and form a well
defined oological sub-group of the family RaUidce.

Gould was right in separating the White-browed under the genus

NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTRA7JAN BIRDS. 7151

Erythra ; it is, however, now consigned to Pi>/ii)Nmnai. Witii regard
to tlie Australian Crates it will be seen the eggs of the White-browed
most approach those of tlie Tabuan in general appearance ; while the
Spotted Crake's differ materially from all by resembling miniature Rail's.

583. — Amaurornis moluccana, Wallace.
Galfinit/a ruficrissa, Gould.

RUFOUS-TAILED MOOR HEN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., supp , pi. 79.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. 153.

Previous Description of Eggs. — North : I'roc. Linn. See, N.S. Wales,
2nd ser., vol. ii., p. 446 (1887).

G'ogrn-phicaJ BiMrihulhm. — Northern Teiiitory (probably), and
Queensland ; also New Guinea, New Britain and Moluccas.

yesi. — Not described.

^//r/v. — Clutch, five ( ?) ; oval in form; dull white, tliickly spotted
with small, irregular-shaped, reddisli-chestnut markings, inteniiingled
with otliers of a deep bluish-gi-ey, appeai-ing as if beneath the surface of
the shell, which pi-edominate chiefly towards the larger end. Dimen-
sions in inches: (1) 1-67 x M4, (2) 1-65 x M6, (3) 1-64 x M5,
(4) r6xl'17, (5) l-.57xl-15 (North). A specimen in the Dalgleish
collection is oval in shape ; texture fine ; surface glossy ; colour, white,
moderately marked (but thickest on the apex) with small blotches and
spots of nifous and dull piuplish-grey. Dimensions in inches :
1-62 x 1'12. If this be a typical egg it is narrower in form and whiter
in ground-colour than any of the known Australian Rails' eggs.

Ohfservatianit. — For the knowledge of this northern Gallinule Gould
was indebted to the late Mr. F. G. Waterhouse, of the Adelaide
Museum, South Australia. The bird was obtained by Mr. Rainbird,
the collector, who shot it on the Cape River, a tributary of the Burdekin,
Queensland.

Tlie Rufous-tailed Moor Hen is recorded in Dr. Ramsay's " Tabular
List " for the Port. Denison and Wide Bay districts. Seeing its range
extends to many Austro-Malayan localities, no doubt the bird occm's
in other parts of northern Austraha.

Scarcely anything is known of the nidification of the Rufous-tailed
Moor Hen, the single e^^g in the Dobroyde collection being apparently
imaccompanied wdth data of any kind. The description of eggs I have
used is partly Mr. North's, taken from a set foiuid by Mr. Parkinson
while at New Britain. Specimens of birds were also procured with the
eggs.

752 NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIKDS.

584. — Triboxyx mortieri. Du Bus. — (565)
NATIVE HEN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 71.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. 164.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 325 (1865); North: Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 324, pi. 19, fig. 4 (1869).

Geographical Dixfrifnitio/i. — South Australia (?) and Tasmania.

Xe.^f. — Constiaicted of glass and other herbage, and usually placed
in rushes or scnib on the gi-ound, near water, .such as the bank of a
river, &c.

Egijs. — Clutch, seven to nine ; long oval in shape, or ellipticAlly
incUned ; texture of shell coarse ; sm-face slightl)- glossy ; colour, greyish
or greenish-stone, sparingly blotched with large markings of reddish-
brown and pvu'plish-brown, also minutely freckled or spotted all over
with the same colours. Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch :
(1) 2-19 X 1-55, (2) 2-18 X 1-52, (3) 2-17 x 1-52, (4) 2-16 x 1-52,
(5) 2-14 X 1-5, (6) 2-1 X 1-56, (7) 2-08 x 1-55. (Plate 19.)

Observations. — The Native Hen of Tasmania is i peculiar to that
island. I can find no evidence of this bird having been found on the
mainland. It is almost terrestrial in its habits, and is exceedingly shy.

When going to enjoy a bath in the South Esk, Tasmania, one warm
afternoon in October (1883), a pair of Native Hens kept dodging about
the bank, producing a loud " crake-crake " noise, at the same time
making a curious bobbing action with the tail, which is otherwise carried
erect like a domestic fowl's. After a good search I foaind an empty
nest.

Mr. A. E. Brent once on the 1st Aug^ist took an early chitch of eight
eggs. Breeding season usually extends from that month to .January.

585. — MiCROTRiBONYx vENTRALis, Gould. — (566)
BLACK-TAILED NATIVE HEN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 72.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. 165.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.
Wales, vol. vii., p. 56 (1882); Campbell: Southern Science
Record (1883); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., pi. 17, fig. 4 (1889).

GeograpJiirnl Distribution. — Australia in general.

Nest. — Open, constructed of gi-ass, and placed on the ground among
bushes such as polygonums, &c., in a swampy situation.

NESTS Ayp EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 753

Egg^. — Clutch, five usually; occasionally as many as eight;
oval or round oval in shape ; texture of shell coarse ; surface glossy ;
colour, dark-green, blotched with roundish markings of chestnut and
purplish-brown, also minutely .spotted all over wth the same colours.
Dimensions in inches of a clutch: (1) 1-8 x 1-26, (2) 179 x 1-26,
(3) 1-76 X 1-27, (4) 1-75 x 1-28, (5) 1-72 x 1-22. (Plate 19.)

Ohservofions. — As Dr. Ramsay and myself have already pointed
out, Gould's description of the eggs of the Black-tailed Native Hen is
hardly acciu-ate. Probably he has described those of the Moor Hen
(GnJlinule ) or some other water-fowl.

The eggs of the Black-tailed Native Hen are not only handsome
for their gi-eenish coloiu-, but the bird itself is intensely interesting.
It has been found in all the States, making its appearance, in the south
especially, at in-egular intervals, and in such numbers sometimes as to
amount to an irruption.

Tlie first of these irruptions we have on record was during May,
1833, when great numbei-s of these Native Hens visited the fields and
gardens of the early settlers in Western Australia. In the same State,
Gilbert mentioned that, " upon one occasion it visited the Swan River in
myriads, treading down and destroying whole fields of com in a single
night."

Also, as further mentioned in Gould, Captain Sturt wrote : " This
bird appeared suddenly in Sovith Au.stralia in 1840. It came from the
north, fresh ihghts coming up and pushing on those which preceded
them. It was moreover evident that they had been unaccustomed to
the sight of man, for they dropped in great numbers in the streets and
gardens of Adelaide, and ran about like domestic fowls. At last they
increased so much in numbers as to swann on all the waters and
creeks, doing gi-eat damage to the crops in the neighbourhood. Tliey
took entire possession of the creek near my house, and broke down and
wholly destroyed about an acre and a quarter of wheat, as if cattle
had bedded on it. They made their fii'st appearance in November,
and left in the beginning of March, gradually retiiing northward as
they had advanced."

It is also recorded in the autumn of 1854 the Mackenzie River
district ( ] Queensland) swarmed with Native Hens. They remained
some time, then disappeared, and not a single specimen was seen there
for the next three years.

Gould himself met the bird in the intei-ior of New South Wales,
but not in such numbers as to attract his attention.

It is to be regi-etted that the local inaiptions or invasions of these
birds have not all been recorded since Govdd's day. If so, there might
have been some data to accoimt for these occurrences. In the Port
Lincoln district (South Australia), Mr. Holroyd states : " Native Hens,
as we call them, come about once in five years, and then in thousands."
Of course we are aware that although the bird is partially ten-estrial
in its habits, it needs water. Therefore, no doubt, its movements are
guided by the amount of rainfall, or rather by the want of r.ninfall,
to fill the swamps and flood the tracts which produce its food where it
usuallv breeds.
48

754 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Dui-ing a season (1892) of great drought in Central Australia, when
Ibises were so plentiful in the soutliern parts of Victoria, a few Black-
tailed Native Hens appeared on the plains near Melton, about twenty
miles from Melbourne.

Usual breeding season October to January or Febmary. Dr. Ramsay
states, when the back country (of Now South Wales) is flooded, these
birds overrun it, breeding almost any time of the year. I had two eggs
from a clutch of eight taken at Cooper's Creek, 20th June (1887).

Mr. T. Carter informs me they were also laying at Point Cloates,
mid- winter (Jvily), 1899 and 1900. A beautiful set of eggs in my collec-
tion is from Mr. W. White's (Reedbeds) preserve, where these Native
Hens breed freely and are exceedingly tame. The young in down are
jet black, and can swim like durkliugs. The old birds feed their young
on bits of thistle, dock, &c.

586. G.\LLINULA TENEBROS.\, Goulcl. (567)

BLACK MOOR HEN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fnl., vol. vi., pi. 73.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. 168.

Previous Descriptions of Egg!. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1S83 and 18S5), also Nests and Eggs Austn. Birds, pi. 2, fig.
567 (.883).

(I'ldt/rii iihirtil Dis/rihiitioii . — Avistralia in general; also New Guinea.

Nest. — Slightly concave on the top, composed of dead flags or
rushes, sometimes with twigs added ; lined with the paper-like bark of
teartree (Me/aleura), and placed in water among mshes, (fee, or at the
base of tea^trees. Dimensions over all, about 12 inches; height (from
the water) about 12 inches.

£'^'/('/.«.- -Clutch, eight to eleven; oval or elliptical in shape; texture
of shell coarse ; surface glossy ; colour, varies from pale-stone to deep
warm-stone, blotched and spotted with chestnut and purplish-brown.
Dimensions in inches of .selected pairs : A (1) 1-98 x l-.'37, (2) 1-98 x 1-4 ;
B (1) 1-96 X 1-33, (2) 1-8 x 1-34. (Plate 19.)

Ohxenatinm. — This interesting Moor Hen is found throughout most
parts of Australia, in situations conducive to its habits, namely, swampy
localities, and especially tiic sedgy margins of lakes, rivers, and arms of
tho sea.

My own experience among these l)ir(ls wa.s of the most pleasant kiM<l,
when my companion, Mr. F. Symonds, and I e^im])i(l on the tea-tree
shores of Lake King, Gippsland, Cin-istmas, 1884, in the hope of
finding a nest.

AESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 755

lu the finest of the Lakes — King — tlicrc are several brackish creeks,
or ai-ms, extending a quarter of a-mile or so into the elevated sloping
shores, clothed with timber and thick scnib and well margined with
teartreo (Mt-hihuca) and sedg}- flags. These latter afford a serene and
seciu'e retreat for several pairs of Gallinulcs.

My friend Mr. R. A. Poole — a great lover of birds of the counti7 —
built a home here on the shore of Bancroft Bay (the aboriginal name
of the locality being Metung). In one of the small creeks, about twelve
yai-ds from where Mr. Poole moored his boats, and about one hundred
vards from the dwelling, two pairs of Gallinules, or Moor Hens, took
up their quarters and became very tame, so that Mr. Poole had no
difficulty in obsei-\-ing their habits. They had been there for three
seasons, and at the expense of the birds he kindly forwarded me speci-
mens of their eggs, which were described and figiu-ed in my Manual,
" Nests and Eggs "' (1883). A strange circumstance occuiTed one
season — the season of my particular visit. Botli pairs of birds recon-
stnicted an old nest, each female laying eight eggs therein, although the
task of incubating the combined clutch devolved upon one pair only,
Mr. Poole thoughtfully secured for me a pair of each tyi^e of this
interesting combination set. One pair was similar to the eggs already
described by me, wliile the others were stouter ovals, wann stone-colour,
and with markings a reddish-brown, larger, and in the form of patches
here and there.

Removing the eggs in no way disconcei'ted the birds, in fact it was
a convenience, because one bird had much difficulty in covering the
whole sixteen eggs. In about three weeks the majority of the eggs
was hatched, the chickens being attended by J)(>th pairs of birds.

In another and neighbouring creek, Mr. Symonds and I iiidely
disturbed the wonted solitude by shooting a brace of birds and robbing
a nest containing eleven fresh eggs. The nest was situa.ted in a clump
of tea-tree a few feet from the shore. It was heaped up about a foot
from the surface of the water, and was constructed of dead flags and
tea-tree twigs, and lined with square patches of the paper-like bark of
the same trees.

The Moor Hens have not such a happy lot as may be expected in
these romantic, sedgy -margined creeks. Troublesome water-rats keep
their ranks reduced by destroying many eggs and young. During our
trip we shot one of these animals in the very act of destroying a nest.
It proved to be the species known as the white-bellied Ijeaver rat
(HydromyH leucogaster ), a perfect monster.

I took exception to the eggs described by Dr. Ramsay and re-des-
ciibed by Mr. North in the Australian Museum " Catalogue." as being
incorrect. What I have akeady said on this point is published in the
" Victorian Natiu'alist " (1893), and need not be here repeated. It was
with the utmost deference to such accomplished authorities as
Dr. Ramsay and Mr. North that I ventured to dispute their descrip-
tions, and I chd it not in the spirit of controversy or fault-finding, but
piuely in the interests of research.

Dr. Ramsay was good enough to show me the eggs referred to and
collected in the Richmond and Clarence River districts bv Mr. Mac-

/56

AESTS AtVn EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

gillivray, 11th January, 1864, which (158 x 1'15) are much too small
for the Gallinule, resembling those of a Rail, and being exactly like
those of Rallina tricolor. Duruig a visit to Sydney, 1885, I presented
Dr. Ramsay, then the Curator of the Australian Museum, with the
birds I shot in Gippsland, together with a pair of the eggs I collected
there. When the " Descriptive Catalogue of Nests and Eggs," issued
by that Institution appeared, it was natural that I expected to see
these specimens, the eggs at all events, referred to, more especially
as there had been a dispute about the species. But nothing was men-
tioned, except again to re-describe the wrong eggs for this species.

Mr. C. French, junr., has obliged me with the following onginal
note of Moor Hens' and Coots' eggs in the same nest : — '' Whilst on a
visit to the swamp at the rear of the boat sheds at Prince's Bridge,
I came across a nest of the Gallinule, or Moor Hen. cunningly hid
among the thick reeds (Aruiuhi plirtn/inite^ ). When I approached
within about ten yards of the nest the GaUinulc quietly left and swam
away, making a screeching noise. While in the act of taking the eggs
from the nest, I was surprised to see, a few yards from me, one of the
Coots, which seemed very excited and at once commenced flapping its
wings and uttering its well-known harsh notes. On examining the
Gallinule's eggs (five), which were almost incubated, I was surprised to
see in the nest one egg of the Coot. About a month previous I found
another Galhnule's nest containing one egg and an egg of the Coot.
Date, 14th December, 1897."

Usual breeding months, November to Januarv, occasionnllv later.

587. PORPHYRIO BEIXUS, Gould. — (564)

BLUE BALD COOT.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 70.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vnl. xxiii., p. 202.

Prmious Description of Eggs.— C^impheW ■ Victorian Naturalist
(1889).

Geograiihiml Distrihutioti. — West and North-west Australia.

Neat. — Similar to that of the Common Bald Coot fP. melnnonoHis).
constructed of aquatic plants, and situated in a swamp.

f'^'.i;/'^- — Clutch, five (about) ; stout oval in shape ; texture of shell
somcwJiat coarse ; .surface glos.sy ; colour, deep-stone, fairly blotched
aiid spotted with brown and jnirplish-brown of different shades.
Dimensions in inches of three examples : (1) 2-3 x 1-65 (2) 2-22 x I'oO
(3) 2-2 X 1-65.

Ohxervations. — This exceedingly li.indsomc swamp bird is the
western representative of the conimon Bald Coot, being found probably

N£STS AND EGGS OF AVSTRAUAN BIRDS. ji^y

ill South as well as West Australia. I observed the beautiful Blue

Bald Coots in the melaleuca swamps in the neighboiuhood of Geo-

graphe Bay, but did not succeed in taking eggs. However, during the

Centennial Exhibition, held at Melbourne, 1S88-9, Jlrs. J. F. Irvine

exhibited tlu-ee eggs of this bird from West xVustralia, which were those

oriaiuallv described bv me before the Field Naturalists' Club of
o *

Victoria.

In the North-west these birds have been found near the jimction of
the Fitzroy and Margaret Rivers, where they were seen wading in the
shallow swamps, or perched on trees growing in the water. Their
habits are identical with those of the common Bald Coot.

588. — PoRPHYRio MELANONOTLS, Temuiinck. — (563)
BALD COOT.

Figure. — Gould; Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 5g.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. .\lus., voi. xxiii., p. 205.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Potts : Trans. New Zealand Inst.,

vol. ii., p. 71 (1870); BuUer : Birds of New Zealand (1S73),

vol. ii., p. 84 (1SS8) ; Ramsay : Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 343 (1S77) ;

Campbell : Southern Science Record (1883) ; North : Austn.

Mus. Cat., app. (1890).

Geographical Didrihation. — Northern Territory, Queensland, New
South Wales, Victoria, South Austraha, and Tasmania; also New
Zealand, Norfolk and Lord Howe Islands.

Xrxt. — A somewhat rough and slightly concave structm-e of rnshes
or other aquatic plants, built up a few inches above the water, in reeds,
tall gi'ass, or at the base of a clump of tea-tree (Melaleuca ). in a swamp
or lagoon. Dimensions, 10 or 12 inches across.

Eggs. — Clutch, four to six usually, occasionally seven or more ;
round oval in shape, or elliptically inclmed ; texttu'e of shell
somewhat coarse ; surface slightly glossy ; colour, ashy-brovrai, or stone,
sometimes with a dull greenish tone, spotted and blotched, especially
about the larger end, -with reddish-brown, purplish-browni, and dull-
grev. Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch : (1) 2-01 x 1-42,
f2)' 1-96 X 1-45, (3) 1-95 X 1-44, (4) 1-92 x 1-4, (5) 1-9 x 1-42; of a
selected pair: (1) 2-06 x 1-48, (2) 2-02 x 1-47. (Plate 19.)

Observationn. — This fine large water bird is well known, and has an
extensive habitat, being found throughout Australia, except West.
Swamps, lagoons, and river margins are places most conducive to its
habits. It is especially abimdaut in Tasmania and the south-east and
eastern parts of the mainland.

The Bald Coot has an extraordinan' manner of eating its vegetable
food. The green stuff is seized between the short hind claw and sole

758

NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

of one foot, held up, and nipped off rapidly in small pieces by using
the powerful mandibles sideways.

The first nest I ever found of the Bald Coot was on one Prince of
Wales' Birthday (9th November), many years ago, in the Como swamp
(now reclaimed), neaa- Toorak. The nest was situated between the
bases of tea-trees, having a depth of water aroiuid of about three feet.
My last nest was found also during November (1892), in the MiuTay
reed-beds. It was an exciting day. I was accompanied by Mr. J.
Gabriel, and, not to mention incidents with tiger snakes, we both had
our baskets full of Pied (Semipabnated) Geese, Ibises, and Bitterns'
eggs, in addition to two sets (four and six respectively) of Bald Coots'.

In New Zealand, the late Mr. T. H. Potts observed that " the
number of eggs to a nest varies considerably, as we have found from
two to seven ; five may be considered the usual complement .
The yoimg nxn about as soon as they arc hatched, and on being dis-
turbed conceal themselves with great art. They are thickly clothed
with black velvety down, interspersed with fine hair-hke points of
silver-grey ; legs, dullish red ; bill has a yellowish-ivory look wliich
contrasts pleasingly with the rest of the body."

Writing from Darling Downs (Queensland), Mr. ilennann Lau says :
" Sultan's Hen ( For]iI)>/ri(i mcliii/uiiii/iix). — Long rushes are trodden
down near the edge of a lagoon, in fairly deep water, and some itibbisli
thrown on top of them. Four eggs ai'e deposited. Breeds October.'

Although the Bald Coot usually lays five or six eggs, Mr. J. W.
Mellor informs me that in October, 1894, at Lake Albert (Soutii
Australia), he found a nest containing eleven eggs. A maximum of
thirteen (probably a double clutch) is said to have been seen in New
Zealand.

Breeding months August or Sc2)teuiber to December.

589. FULICA AUSTRALIS, Goidd. — (568)

COOT.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 74.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii,, p. 217.
Previous Descriptions oj Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883) ; North : Au.stn. Mus. Cat., p. 326 (1889).

Geo(iraphical Dintrihit/loii. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania.

yVe.s^ — Bulky (the greater part being submerged), constructed of
dead rushes or other aquatic plants, and built up to a few inches above
the surface of the water in a swamp or lagoon, where it is always
placed. Dimensions over all, 13 to 14 inches; depth, 15 to 17 inches
(i.e., 4 to 5 inches aljove water and balance below) ; ogg cavity, 7 to 8
inches across by 21 inches deep.

COUTS NKST.

ftom a Fhoto by the Authur.

A'ESTS AXV ECGS Ol AV ST KALI AM BIRDS.

759

Eyy.t. — Clutch, scvuu to nine ; oval in shape, or slightly more com-
pressed at one end ; texture of shell coarse ; surface slightly glossy ;
colour, dull-white or light-stone, marked all over with freckles and
small roundish .spot* of dark purplish-brown, with an adinixtur.- of faint
or underlving markings. Dimensions in inches of a clutch ;
(1) 2-0 X 1-4, (2) 2-0 X 1-36, (3) 1-98 x 1-32, (4) 1-95 x 1-4, (5) 1-93 x 1-37 ;
of a nan-ower sized set, with a more dusky ground-colour :
(1) l-99xl-32, (2) l-98xl-33, (3) 1-96 x 1-28, (4) 1-94 x 1-34.
(Plate 20.)

Ohserviitldiix. — The Coot is a frequenter of the more inland waters
throughout Australia and Tasmania, but is also found in the swamps
and lagoons near the coast. In such places their black forms in scores
may be seen scuttling away over the surface of the water, especially if
the birds be disturbed. It is a pretty sight to see a party of Coots
diving in a lagoon for food. Every now and again one will jump
u])waxds slightly, apparenth' to gain impetus, before taking a '' header "
bi-neath the vvalcr. then return to the surface to devour the green stuiT
recovered from below.

This Coot's eggs arc common in all collections, and may be readily
distinguished from all their kind by the smallness of the markings.

The late Mr. Gilbert Bateman, in Riverina, once found a Coot's
nest containing thirteen eggs, but whether it was a single clutch or
the progeny of two birds, he did not know.

In the lagoon, before it was reclaimed for river improvements, at
the rear of the boat sheds at Prince's Bridge, Mr. C. French, juur..
and I spent an entertaining evening photogiaphing a Coot's nest
■in situ. But it was a picture taken under difficulties. During the
operation we were standing in water nearly up to oiu- aimpits, and
experienced no little trouble in getting the buoyant legs of the tripod
to stick in the murky mud beneath. However, reference to the illus-
tration will show tiiat we succeeded. Afterwards Mr. French removed
the nest, which was composed ol quite an armful of the bamboo-like
reeds ( Arundu).

The Coot is usually a late breeder, but the limits of its season arc
possibly August and December.

Tlio young in down are black, having yellow hair-like tips, the
down thickest about the face and neck ; bill, cream-colour.

76()

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ORDER- ALECT0RIDE5.

FAMILY— GRUID^ : CRANES.

590. — Antigone australasiana, Gould. — (543)
CRANE OR NATIVE COMPANION.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 48.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. 265.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (184S) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 291 (1865) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 314 (1S89).

Geographical Di.itribution. — Australia in general.

Nest. — Flat, consisting of a layer of coarse grass (pulled up by the
roots) and reeds, mixed with lumps of hard bark, sticks, &c., and
situated on a knoll of gi'ound or " islet " in a swampy situation.
Dimensions over all, about 36 inches; height, 5 or 6 Laches; diameter
at top, 24 inches. Sometimes there is only a semblance of a nest, when
the eggs rest upon the bare gi'oimd.

Eggs. — Clutch, invariably two ; usually elongated in shape, pointed
or compre.sscd towards one end ; texture of shell exceedingly coarse ;
surface glossy and pitted ; colour, light-drab or dirty white, blotched,
cliiefly about the apex, with umber and purplish-brown. In some parts
of the Tropics the eggs are of a vmiform dull-white colour, without
markings. Dimensions in inches, large examples: (1) 3'9 x '2-45,
(2) 3-7 X 2-65 ; small examples : (1) 3-65 x 2-4, (2) 3-5 x 2-35. (Plate 20.)

Observations. — In the large and familiar fig^-c of the Native Com-
panion, or Australian Crane, we have a conspicuous plain wanderer.
Like the Wild Turkey, it is common in most parts of Australia, where
it is the sole representative of its kind. It has a soldier-like
appearance in its luiiform of grey, with red facings (the bare flesh
about the face and back of head is bright-red). The extraordinary
qiuidrille parties, and grotesque motions in capering " corrol)borces '
of these birds have been witnessed with pleasiu'c by most dwellers
of the plain.

It is to be regretted that the name of the Native Companion was
ever removed from the Victorian Schedule of Protected Birds, for it
is an exceedingly ornamental bird, and its figure greatly enhances the
charm of any landscape; moreover, it kills vermin, such as snakes,
while its flesh is good for the table. It is somewhat remarkable that
the Cr.iTie does not occur in the south-western pari, of Australia,
although I have included West Australia in the geogi-aphical range,

^ESTS A.VD J^CGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 761

because I possess evidence of iudividuals having been seen to the west
of Eucla, and ouce on the Ashburton. However, the birds arc plenti-
ful in the North-west, above Lagrange Bay,

Two nests I obsei-\'ed near the JMuixay River in both instances were
in a swamp, and appeared to have been biult by the bii-ds digging about
and heaping up the earth, gi-ass, and other vegetable matter. ''Rusticus"
in contributing some interesting information to the columns of " The
Australasian," in October, 1886, with regard to the nesting of the Aus-
tralian Crane, stated that, in the course of an extensive experience, he
found wet or swampy groimd always chosen by the bird for its nesting
place, usually swamplets, called crab-holes, in which case the bird will
select the most elevated site obtainable. The tiny islets usually found
in swamplets, just large enough to accommodate a nest, are amongst
the bird's favourite building sites. Sometimes, however, the Native
Companion selects deep and dense swamps ; the birds will then build
a huge nest of tussock grass, raised high above the surface of the
water. The nest is almost flat on the top. Usually when the nest is
approached the sitting bird walks slowly away, turning round now and
again, and uttering a hoarse, discordant note, which is answered by her
mate, who is never far distant. Sometimes the two birds will be
found feeding in close proximity to the nest. This is before the hen
has commenced to sit ; at this time they seem to care very little for
the fate of their nest if approached. Cutting a few grotesque capers
and uttering their peculiar hai'sh cry, they take wing for a few
hundred yards, then settle down and resume feeding. " Rusticus "
further remarked he had observed that Native Compajiions stick to the
same swamp year after year, and build as close to the old spot as
possible, although never using the same nest twice. It is not
uncommon to see two pairs of birds building in the same swamp, while
on one occasion he found no less than three nests, containing eggs, in
a swamp not haif-a-mile in extent.

A Native Companion's nest I had the opportiuiity of examining
myself was situated on a little gi-assy rise, about three or foiu^ yards
across, in a swamp amid dead timber. Two dead thistles stood near
the nest, which contained one egg, and is the one described above.
The birds were seen perambulating at a respectful distance away.

In a swamp, near liis camp at Mordialloc, Mr. H. W. Wheelwright
once foimd a Native Companion's nest. The nest was built high, of
dry rushes, and contained the usual complement — a pair of eggs.
Another time he captured a half-grown bird, which was kept at his
tent for a long time. That was in the early " fifties."

A pail- of birds, bred at the Zoological Gardens, Melbourne, where,
Mr. Dudley Le Souef states, the birds .selected a dry knoll in swampy
ground, about four feet away from water. The nest was of the rudest
description, being only a few sticks and leaves, and the eggs themselves
were really on the bare ground, where a slight depression was made.
The hen bu-d mostly sat, the male sitting by the nest when she was
oflF feeding, apparently looking after it. However, it was found that
towards the end of incubation the male bird took turns at sitting. He
was very savage, and drove any other birds away from the vicinity.

j52 NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

It is known that at times Native Companions fight desperately to
defend their eggs against intruders, and woe betide the being that comes
in contact with their sharp bills. The breeding mouths are from Jime
to November, and probably later, according to the country and the
seasons, or as soon as there is sufficient rain.

After breeding season the Cranes would appear to bo gi-egarious,
assembling in flocks of scores and even hundreds, especially in the
Murray River district. When in the vicinity of the Moira Lakes,
March, 1893, at sunrise one morning 1 witnessed a glorious sight. The
moist tract in the centre of a di'y lake-bed, on the Victorian side, was
covered with Cranes, which at a distance resembled a flock of sheep.
The birds were unsettled, and were coming from the Moira Lake, on
the New South Wales side, in companies of about a score, filling the
air with discordant cries. Others, with heavy flight, were winging their
way over the red gum-trees towards the rising sun, to feed on the plains
or the cleared gi'ound beyond.

One morning in Queensland I watched a wild dog sneaking after
a Native Companion. When the quadruped came too near, the bird
simply gave a few leisurely flaps of its great wings, and placed a con-
venient space betwixt itself and the dog. Tliis perfonnance was
repeated several times, but whether the dingo eventually secured his
prey or gave up the chase in disgust (as I am inclined to believe he
did) I had not time to ascertain. Native Companions are frequently
offered for sale in the Melboui-ne market. It was only the other week
I saw six hanging in a shop. After being hung for a few days and
then stuffed with good gi-avy-becf they are excellent eating, and quite
equal to the Bustard or Wild Turkey.

FAMILY— OTIDID.^ : BUSTARDS.

591.--El'podotis .\rsTR.\Li.s. J. li. Gray. — (i'Jo)
BUSTARD OK WILD TURKEY.

Figure. — Gould : Birds oi Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 4.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiii., p. 328.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (184S) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 2oq (1865): Ramsay: Ibis, p. 417
(1867); North t Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 297 (1889).

(liiii/rd iihiriil Dixtriliiitiini. — Whole of Australia.

Nent. — Sometimes indicated by a few twigs or gra.sses, l)ut is more
frequently the bare groutul in ojien situations or on a gi'a.ssy knoll of a
plain.

Ni-STS AND KCGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. yQi^

Egiju. — Clutch, one to two usually ; rare occasions three ; nearly
elliptical iu shape; texture of shell coarse; surface glossy, with usually
a few limy nodules; colour, olive, obscurely mottled or smeared,
chiefly in a longitudinal cUrection, with ohve-brown. Occasionally an
egg has a dull, gi-eenish gi-ound-colour, or is of an entirely bluish shade.
Dimensions in inches of five selected examples : (1) 3-3 x 2-32,
(2) 3-27 X 2-3, (3) 3-13 x 2-25, (4) 3-12 x 2-25, (5) 3-2 x 2-14. (Plate 20.)

Observatioiu. — This noble bird roams tlu'oughout Australia, and may
be found in most localities conducive to its habits, such as the plains.
How majestic the Bustard looks as it paces slowly, with head erect ! The
general plumage is dappled-gi'ey, with yellowish legs and bill. The male
bird, which averages about 18 lbs. weight, is much larger than his mate ;
and also has the long, light-gi-ey plumes about the neck of gi'eater length.
Therefore, as far as the pair is concerned, he has, undoubtedly, the
■ lordly appearance. Their flesh, although somewhat dai"k iu colour,
is well flavoured and excellenti eating ; but, like all game, it most decidedly
improves by keeping. " God provides the food, but the devil the cooks,"
as the saying goes. Many a line Bustard has been pronoimced tough
and tasteless simply because it was cooked before the feathei-s were
sciu-cely cold, instead of ha\'ing been hung for three or foui' days, or a
week, if possible. The Wild Tm-key has leamt instinctively the value of
its flesh, for it has become " mighty " shy, and can only be procui'ed by
stratagem. The best mode is shooting from horseback, or from some
vehicle. Referring to my diaiy for 1877, I find the following note re
stalking Wild Turkey; — "Two buggy parties out, the clergyman's son
and myself occupying one. Upon reaching a great, dry salt-bush plain
we separated. The other buggy soon became lost to our view in the
distant dancmg mii-age. Tiu-keys tolerably nunier^oiLs — some flying iu
pairs in their own singulai- fashion, with heavy flight and outstretched
necks ; others stalking erectly through the salt-bush, now and again
' planting. Selected one and commenced a process of great-cii'cle-sailing
round it. 'Will the horses stand fii'e?' 'The near one will. I've
never tried the other; he can but kick up,' was my companion's quiet
reply. Circles becoming smaller — bird evidently mieasy, glancing first
from one side and then the other, at the same time quickening his foot-
steps. Now within shooting distance. ' Pull up !' Instantly the bird
rose with outstretched wings — a good target of over fifty inches in expanse
of wings. From the seat in the buggy i fired. ' Good shot ! That's
bagged him !' A fine male bird, about 14 lbs. weight, was soon on the
floor of the buggy. Had a few more shots. Fancy my shot was rather
Ught, as ^ plugged a bunch of feathers out of another ' chap ' which flew
away, apparently vmhurt. Was delighted with the behaviour of the
horses. They were evidently up to the business, because when I , fired
over their ears they never as much as moved a muscle. On anival home
at evening we ascertained the other buggy party had bagged three birds."
There have been arguments about the weight of Wild Turkeys. Gould
records the weight from 13 lbs. to 16 lbs., remarking that the male
considerably exceeds the female in size. A well-known game dealer in
Melbourne who used to have many birds passing tlrrough his hands quoted

764

NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSl'RALIAN BIRDS.

18 lbs. as a fail- weight ; while a sporting gentleman in Western Australia
infoiTned me that his bag of Tiu-keys for three months of the season
1889 was 44, the average weight being 14 lbs. or 1.5 lbs. lu one instance
only the maximum of 21 lbs. was reached.

Though these useful birds are now protected all the year roimd in
Victoria, we hear wliispers of their being served up at electorate dinners
in the northern provinces. Tliis is veiy wi-ong. What is the use of
asking our legislators to extend better protection to our useful and
ornamental birds when they are the Jirst to transgi'ess their own enacts
ments? Why are Bustards becoming so scarce? Partly on accoimt of
their destruction, and partly on account, says an accurate observer, of
the depasturing of stock, wliich destroys the birds' favourite feeding-
grounds. Even the aborigines notice tliis, and discard their own
language to express more forcibly to you tliat " blank jumbucks (sheep)
walk, walk ; eat, eat ; never sleep ; hunt em everything away. "

The Bustard has a habit of " planting " or feeding behind cover when
danger threatens. When erectj it stands between three feet and foui-
feet in height, and has, when walking, a slow and majestic cai'riage. On
the wing, also, it is easily recognised by its hea\'y flight, with long, out-
stretched neck. Its food consists of grasses and other vegetation, lizards,
insects, chiefly locusts, &c.

Respecting the habits of birds coming in to drink, 1 am infonned
by Mr. H. W. Ford when in the interior of New South Wales, between
the Paroo and Wai'rego Rivers, 1883-4-5, he noticed that the Wild
Tiu-key (Bustard) never flies right up to the water, but always settles
two hundred or three himdred yards away, and walks in. Sometimes,
he thinks, they walk in miles, because he never saw one fly right in, but
has noticed them walking in over half a mile on the plains. They
come to water nioniing and evening, and sometimes through the day.

" Bush Naturalist," in writing for " The Queenslander," 2'2nd Jime,
1878, gives his observations as to how the natives catch the Wild
Turkeys. Out of the shaft of one of the wing feathers of a Turkey
they make a sort of elastic top to a thin rod till it bends over like a
gig whip : this top is made by splitting up a feather shaft and then
twisting it up again (something like the way in which a stockman
twists the ' cracker ' at the end of his wliip). As this is being twisted,
they incorporate with it a thin string made out of the hair of the gins
(not traps), and finally finish oil' with a noose ol gin's hair ; the whole
apparatus is not unUke a fly-fisher's rod. Ai-med with this and an
ordinaiy light spear, the black, having noted some Turkeys, starts oflf,
ties the thin rod on to his spear, and actually manages to get so close
to the Turkey as to put the noose over the bird's neck, and this, too,
in broad daylight, and with no cover to hide himself in, except
ordinary long gi-ass '

Great have been the arguments whether the Bustaj'd lays one or
more eggs. The disputants on botli sides — those who hold to the single
egg and those who are satisfied as to the plurality — arc coiTcct, because
I leain from a bush natmalist and keen observer that the Wild Turkey,
as he calls it, lays one, sometimes two eggs, according to the sea.sons
being good or indifferent. Fui'ther, it was his experience that in

^'ESTS AA-p EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 765

bad or seasons of drought tliey did not lay at all. About the season
of 1867 he recollects observing tliree eggs in one nest on the Lake Boga
run (Victoria).

Ihe following ai-e tile data 1 have collected bearing on the niuuber of
eggs laid by the Bustard.

Notes from Western Australia, by Mr. Tom Cai-ter : —

" One egg appears to be the usual niunber."

'' 2nd October, one egg."

" 1st August, 1892, found nest with two fresh eggs — Point Cloates."

Observations in South Australia by my uncle, Mr. Tliomas
Pinkerlon : —

" Often took one, but frequently two."

■' xYbout 1866, on Maooup Run, about eleven miles north-west of
Penola, saw three young, apparently just hatched, in one nest."

New South Wales. — " September, 1887. A friend put bird off two
eggs, near the Lachlan." JVtr. R. J. Dalton (Paroo), 24tli September,
1897. foimd " two Turktys' nests, one egg in each."

Queensland, — '' Onlv lays one egg ; sometimes, but I'arely, two " (Lau).

Xorth-west Interior. — " Never saw moi-e than one young " (Price
Fletcher).

Both Gould and Dr. Ramsay state that a pair of eggs is the usual
complement.

The sexes are said to keep apai-t in flocks, except in the breeding
season. Dtu-ing that period the male Bustard has a cm-ious habit of
" showing off," as the children would say, by ascending a slight knoU or
eminence on the plain, where he makes frills of his feathers and cuts all
sorts of capers, majestic or otherwise.

Breeding months include June to November, bub chiefly September
and October. A relation of Mr. J. T. Gillespie found a fresh egg in
Central Queensland in the middle of March (1898).

766

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ORDERLIMICOL/E: PLOVERS, &c.

FAMILY— (EDICNEMID^ ; THICK-KNEES.

592. — BuRHiNTS (OSdicnemus) grallarius, Latham. — (496)
STONE PLOVER.

Fiffure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 5.

Ktlcrence. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 18.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia {1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 211 (1865); Harting : Proc. Zool.
Soc, p. 45S (1S74) ; Ramsay : Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 335 (1S77) ;
North : Austn. Mus. Cat., with fig., p. 297 (1889) ; Campbell :
Proc. Austn. Assoc, vol. v., p. 423 (1893).

Geoc/raphirnl Di-sfrihufiim. — Whole of Au.stralia and Tasmania
(accidental).*

Xe.^f. — Eggs are deposited on the bare gi'ound.

Ef/(/-i. — Clutch, usually two, in two known instances three ; elegant in
shape and inchned to oval ; shell thin and comparatively fine in texture ;
surface slightly glossy ; colour, pale-stone or light-buff, blotched all over,
sometimes with large markings of luiiber and dull-slate. In some sets the
markings are smaller or finer in character. In a handsome pair taken on
the WciTibee Plains, Victoria, the umber coloviring predominates on one
example, while on the other the dull-slate has prominence. There is a
perceptible difference in specimens from Western Australia, which are
warmer in general tone of colour, shorter in length, and decidedly
rounder in shape. Dimensions in inches of proper clutches from Eastern
and Western Australia : —

Eastk

RN E

r.GS.

Western

Eggs

Clutch A (i)

(2)

2-41
235

X
X

I .57

I-fi

CI

lUrl

, A(i) ..
(2) . .

2 13 X

2-21 X

i6i
1-59

,. B(i)

(2.

231
228

X
X

1-57
I-5S

••

B(.) ..
(2) ..

212 X
211 X

16
I 61

.. C (I)

12)

23

2-28

X
X

1-51
1-51

C (I) ..
(2) .

202 X
201 X

' 5.S

(Plate 21.)

OJntervalioriK. — The Stone Plover, erroneously called a " Ctu'lcw," is
a well-known bird, being common to the whole of Australia. It is so

• Two birds are reported to have been obtained in Tasmania— one at Spring
Bay. April, i8qs. and the other at Swansea, July following Proc. Roy Soc.
Tasmania, p. xxiii. (1894-5).

^'ESTS AXD rCGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 767

well knowTi that we have only to mention its giey-mottlcd plumage,
which is lighter in colom- upon the miderneath parts of the body, its
large yellow eyes and long pale yellowishgi-een legs ; the bird stands about
two feet in height. Whether in the tropical forests of Queensland or
the vast woods of Gippsland or the drier tracts of the interior provinces
and of Western AustraUa, even- dweller of the bush is familiar with the
weird melancholy calls of tlie bird at night. Mr. Hem-y Seebohm, in his
great work, " The Geographical Distribution of the, family Charadriidce,
or the Plovers, Sandpipers, Snipes. ;md their Allies," has left vexy few
st,))ie< imtiu-ned, but in re-naming our bird at the " Eastern " Australian
Stone Curlew, and in quoting his able friend Mi". J. E. Harting for
reference for the description of the egg, he overlooked the fact that
Mr. Hartiug's specimen was taJien in Western Australia.

It has been remarked that the eggs of Stone Plovei-s frequenting the
plains north or west of the Dividing Ranges are smaller in size and have
the markings more bliu-red or less defined than those on the coastal side.
It will be observed by the dimensions given above that the eggs
from Western Australia are decidedly smaller. When on my visit, I heard
there were two varieties of Stone Plovers in the western ten-itoiy — the
larger being a dark bird, and the smaller light-coloiu-ed. But what we
hear is not evidence, and the thing lacks confirmation. Yet there may
be something to account for the smaller-sized eggs from the western
parts, especially when we remember that Gould hinted at a second race
of these birds in Australia.

During my brief sojourn in the Cardwell district, Northern Queens-
land, August, 1885, I was surprised to see large flocks, perhaps fifty or
sixtv birds, of Stone Plovers camping in the open forest glades. Probably
it is a habit, especially amongst yoimger birds, to congi-egate in winter
before dispersing southward or elsewhere to breed.

Breeding months include August to December, and probably January.
E.irly in September I recollect picking up, near Lake Tragowel. Victoria,
a pair of eggs, just chipped ; by night the chickens were hatched, able to
stand up and feed tliemselves. The prevailing coloiu- of the yoimg in
down is a light grey, with a dark marking in the shape of an oval Une
extending from the head to near the end of the back, dark Hnes also
extend from the wings towards the tail. The pai'ent birds at times
feign lameness or perform other scheming actions to attract intniders
from the vicinity of their young. The young, if alanned, hide them-
selves and lie quite motionless, with necks outstretched, rendeiing their
discovery a matter of difficultv. A farmer friend of mine was always
able to checkmate the Stone Plovers by the aid of a sagacious cattle dog.
Duinng breeding season, if he noticed a bird running away in a suspicious
manner, when he crossed the trail, he would send the dog back along the
line and so pick up the eggs or young.

As the Stone Plover is the initial species in the fascinating Order
of the LimiroJce, I should like to direct attention to the fact that where
a pair of eggs is the usual complement laid by any species, the egg
possessing the sharper point (at the smaller end) is nearly in every case
the longer egg. No doubt the difference in shape and length may be
attributed to the sexual difference of the embi-yos, and that the more

768

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

lengthened or the sharper-pointed egg is the male. In the dimensions
given above of the six clutches of Stone Plover eggs, the No. 1 eggs
(which have the shai-per ends) are the longer in every instance
except one. It will be fiu'ther seen that this iiile applies to other
species as they come under oiu' notice. With reference to the longer
and sharper-pointed eggs, I may mention that a relative of mine
experimented with a setting of domestic fowls' eggs, selecting the longest
and most pointed examples, and all, without exception, hatched out
male birds.

A Stone Plover killed by a famier had two mice in its stomach,
besides several scorpions. The bird was shot at night, near a dam, and
was taken in the darkness for a duck. The Stone Plover is evidently
a useful bird as a vermin destroyer.

I shall conclude with my last reminiscence of Stone Plovers. I was
fishing on the MuiTay one summer night, some distance from home, when
my horse cleared off, so I elected to remain in the scrub all night. Stone
Plovers were very numerous, and I amused myself by tiying to put their
weird calls into the tonic sol-fa system, but failed. First one bird would
utter five or six prelim inaiy wails, preceding an interval of faster cries,
then a finale of a jumble of sounds, as if more than one bird were taking
part.

593. — Orthorhamthus (Esacus) magnirostris, Vieillot. — (407
LONG-BILLED STONE PLOVER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 5.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus.,,yol. xxiv., p. 22.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 214 (1865) ; Hume : Nests and
Eggs Indian Birds (1875), also Gates' ed"., vol. iii . p. 334 (1890).

Geographira! Dixtrihiifion . — North-west Australia. Northern Teiri-
tory and North Queensland ; also New Gtiinea and Malayan Archipelago.

Nest. — The bare ground merely, or a small depression in the sand,
a little above high- water mark.

Eficix. — Clutch, one, or probably two ; inrlined to oval in fonn ;
textvu-e coarse ; surface slightly glossy ; colon)-, stony-grey, somewhat
boldly blot^-hed and spla.sliod with dark-olive and dull-grev. Dimensions
in inches of single examples : (I) 2'59 x 1-78, (2) 2-4 x 1-8. (Plate 21.)

Ohnervations. — ^This Stone Plover differs from the southern bird in
having a conspicuous white bar across the shoulder, also more white about
the face, with a bill drawn out to apparently an inordinate length ;
liencc the name Long-billed Stone Plover. It prefers the seashore and
oozy mudbanks, to regale itself on small crabs and other low organisms.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIKVS.

769

while the southern Stone Plover loves rocky plains and open forest
conntiy. Tlie Loug-billed Stone Plover has been found as far south
on the western coa^t as Point Cloates.

Gould was favoured with a specimen of this fine bird's egg from
Commander J. M. E. Ince, who obtained it in the Port D:u-win district.

The example in my collection was kindly presented to me by
Mr. Dudley Le Souef, who obtained it dm-ing one of his tiii>s to the
Cooktown district, 1894.

FAMILY^CURSORIID^ : COURSERS.

594. — Stilti.v is.\bell.'^, Vicillot. — (515)
Glareola grallaria, Temminck.

PRATINCOLE.

Figure. — Gould ; Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 22.

Kefercnce. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 51.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Linn. See, N.S.
Wales, vol. vii. (1882) ; Campbell : Southern .Science Record
(1883); North: Austn. Mus. Soc, pi. i6, fig. 9 (1889);
Campbell : Proc. Austn. Assoc, fol. v., p. 438 (1893).

Gengraphiral Distribution. — Australia in general ; also New Guinea,
Aru Islands, Ke Islands, Moluccas, Celebes, Flores, Java and Borneo.

Nest. — Usually a. bare spot where the earth or sand assimilates the
colouration of the eggs. ,

Efig". — Clutch, two to three, usually two ; at first sight not imlike
those of the lighter coloured type of the Black-fronted Dottrel ( Jagialitis
melanops), with the exception of being proportionately larger, rounder
and not so pyiiform in shape ; surface slightly glossy ; colour, usually
yeUowish-buil or stone-colour, but sometimes of a deep stone shade,
lightly marked almost all over with spots and splashes of umber, inter-
mingled with patches of grey. Dimensions in inches of proper paii's :
A (1) 1-29 X -94, (2) l-23'x-95; B (1) 1-25 x -96, (2) 1-22 x -97.
(Plate 21.)

Ohscrvations. — Authors agi-ee that this swallow-like Plover is the
most elegant of its genus. The general colour of the bird is reddish-
brown or rtifous, with a darker marking of rich chestnut on the abdomen ;
the feet and legs are black, and the long black pinions extend, when
folded, 2\ inches beyond the tail. Altogether the Pratincole possesses
a swaUow-Uke appearance, especially with its long pointed wings, which
give the bu'd a great power of flight, enabling it to take its food (insects
of various kinds) on the wing if it chooses, while it is equally at home
running swiftly over the ground with its slender legs after insect prey.
The total length is about nine inches.
49

■j-jCi NESTS AXV EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIEPS.

It may be deemed a rare bird, and is particularly' an inhabitant of
the red plains and sandhills of the interior provinces of the Continent.
In the vicinity of Adelaide they appeared suddenly one year ; and on the
plains of Riverina. they were tolerably plentiful dimng the season 1896.

Mr. Stafford C. Cvurie kindly sent for my collection a bird and a
pair of eggs, collected by him at Puckawidgee, near Denihciuiu, 14th
November. They were an exceedingly light coloured pair. A second
nest was found by him on the 21st. I also received from
Mr. Herbert Brown, Kildonan, a beautiful pair of eggs, found by him
the following month on the plains of Urana. Mr. Brown writes :
" When the Pratincole alights on the gi'oiuid after flying, it raises and
lowers its body after the manner of larks, and has a liabit of bobbing
its head up and clown like a Sandpiper or Plover. It lays its eggs on
the gi'ound, merely scraping a slight hollow. A good mother-bird uses
many devices to attract attention to herself to withdraw you from the
nest."

Tlie specimens I had previously were odd examples from the Mitchell
district. Central Queensland, and were found by a brother of oiu*
Tasmanian oologist, Mr. Geo. K. Hinsby. The specimens I described
in 1883, which were from Mr. H. H. Peck's collection, were taken in
the Darling district, New South Wales. However, Dr. Ramsay first
described the species the previous year from Mr. E. G. Vickery's
collection, who procured them near Wilcannia, in September, 1880.

The breeding months, so far as we possess knowledge at present,
appear to be from September to Januai-y. Several pairs of eggs were
found by Mr. S. W. Jackson in October (1898), on the hard clay on the
edge of a swamp near South Grafton, New South Wales — a- most unusual
locality.

In his " Notes on the Habits, kc, of Birds Breeding in the Interior
of New South Wales,"* Mr. K. H. Bennett states concerning the
Pratincaleithat : " This somewhat singulnr bird is one of the few migratory
species that visit this part of the colony and remain during the intense
heat of summer. As a rule it arrives towards the end of September and
departs about the end of February. During that interval it breeds ;
and the places for this pm^pose, and, in fact, its habitat during its stay,
are the bare patches of ground, entirely destitute of vegetation, so
frequent on tlie plains here. Some of the.se bare patches are of con-
siderable extent, and the surface of the ground is broken up into coimtless
small pieces, the size of a pea to that of a walnut, giving the appearance
of having been chipped over with a hoe. This is partly due to the nature
of the soil and to the intense heat and dryness of the climate, which
cause the surface to crack in all directions and become quite loose. It
is on these loose patches that the Pratincole deposits its eggs, two in
number. It makes no nest, but simply lays its eggs on the bare surface
of the loose broken srouiid ; and so much do they assimilate in fonn and
colour- to the suiTounding lumps of earth, that imless the bird is seen
to move ofl them a person might walk on them and not observe them ;
and on several occasions I have taken my eyes off tlie spot for a few

• P L.S . N.S. Wales, vnt x , p K.H (1885 .

NESTS AA'P EGGS OF AUSTRAL/ AN BIRDS. 771

seconds and then had considerable difficulty in disting^shing the eggs
again.

" As a rule, the eggs are laid in October ; but this year (1884), for the
fii-st time, I obtained them in September. Usually the bird is very shy,
but during the period of incubation it loses this .shyness, and both parent
birds will allow themselves to be approached quite closely, and seem
regardless of danger in their anxiety to protect their eggs or young.
In fact I have seen the female bird so loath to quit the eggs that it wa.s
only when I touched her with my hand that she would quit the nest,
jvocking savagely at my hand several times before she did so ; the male
bird, in the meantime, lying flat on the ground, with outstretched
wings, a few feet off, uttering the most plaintive cries.'

595. — -Gl.^reol.^ ORiENTALis. Lcacli. — (516)
ORIENTAL PRATINCOLE.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of .\ustralia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 1;^.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 58.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Hume : Nests and Eggs Indian Birds,
(1875), also Oates' ed., vol. iii., p. 319 (iSqo) ; Campbell :
Southern Science Record (1883).

Gei)(/r(iiiliiral Bixtril)ufiiiii . — West and North-west Australia, Nor-
thern Territory, Queensland and New South Wales ; also extending
through the Malayan Archipelago to Burmah and India.

Nest. — A slight hollow on the bare ground.

^(19^- — Clutch, two to three ; round oval in shape ; texture of shell
comparatively fine ; surface without gloss ; colour, dull yellowish-stone,
lieavily blotched with dark-umber, almost black, and cloudy sepia or
dull gi-e\-ish-black. Dimensions in inches of a pair: (1) 1-3 x 10,
(2) 1-25 X 1-0. According to Hume, the average measurements of a
considerable series are : 118 x -93.

Ohservatinti-i. — The Oriental Pratincole wanders or migi'ates from
Asia to the northern parts of Australia, where it .sometimes appears
in countless niunbers. It has been foiuid a-s far south as New 'South
Wales. This Pratincole has a more chubby appearance than the other
species, and is a greyish creature, with an oval marking of spots on the
throat.

In Hiune's " Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds," Mr. Eugene Oates,
who has invaded the nesting haunts of the Oriental Pratincole in Pegu,
Lower Burmah, gives the following interesting information: — "I have
found eggs of this species from tlie 16th April to the 1st May, on which
latter date some eggs were fresh, but others much incubated. Three
appears to be the maximum number of eggs, but two only are more

/72

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

frequently laid. The eggs are deposited on the bai-e ground, buriit-up,
sandy paddy-fjelds being much frequented. No great niunber of birds
breed together, nor have I ever found two nests vei-y close to each other.
The finding of eggs is consequently veiy laborious work. When dis-
turbed, the sitting bird flies round one's head for a short time and then
goes away. But when the yoimg are lying hid, then the birds display
great anxiety, and it is on these occasions that the bii'd squats on the
ground with wings outspread and neck stretched out. I fancy this
action is meant to counterfeit lameness, and so draw the intruder off
the scent. The young bird runs as soon as it is hatched. Its colour
is a mixed pepper and salt, the black preponderating. "

So much for the bird in its Oriental home. But it has been left to
Mr. G. A. Keaitland, as a reward for his enthusiasm as a field
naturalist, to observe and describe wonderful flocks of these birds in
their Austral quarters and by-way, extending the locality of the species
to North-west Australia, where he procui'ed several skins near the
Fitzroy River. In the " List of Birds " of the Calvert Expedition (1897),
Mr. Keartland writes : " During January I noticed a flight of strange
birds, which afterwards proved to be this Pratincole, about a quarter of
a mile from the telegraph station. I ran for my gun, but was surprised
to see the birds rising fronx the ground like a continuous column of smoke
and circling overhead imtil they spread out so a.s to almost obsciux the
sky. I was within one hundred yards of them when the last bird left
tlie gi'ound. After soaring and rising in the air they disappeared in a
southerly direction. For about a mouth afterwards they were seen in
lai'ge flocks nearly eveiy day coming from the West, and later in the
evening returning in that direction. They came in a similar manner
to a flight of Swifts, scattered over a wide area and circling or dashing
along in pursuit of insects. Those shot had their gullets filled with
beetles and grasshoppers. Owing to their tender skin I found it difiicult
to obtain specimens. Although a number was shot, those which fell
any distance were ruined by striking the gi'ound, as the concussion
invariably knocked oflf large pieces of skin. The examples secured were
shot whilst skimming over a swamp, from which they were retrieved by
a little black lu-chin about eight years old. Tlie natives were veiy
indignant at my shooting these birds, and a deputation from the blacks'
camp explained for my edification that if I killed any more a big rain
would come and never stop until it had washed everything away. Tlie
appearance of this bird is regarded by residents of North-west Australia
as an indication of the approach of rain, and it is locally known as the
' Little Stonn Bird.' "

The eggs of the Oriental Pratincole in my collection were collected
at Akyab, Bumiah, season 1885.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. jjt^

FAMILY— P^UIRID^ : PARRAS.

596. — Hydralectok GALLiNACEus. Tciuiiuuck. (569)

UOMB-CRESTED J AC AN A (PARRA).

Figure. — Gould : Birds oJ Australia, fol., vol. vi , pi. 75.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mas., vol. xxiv., p. 79.

Previous Deseriftions 0] Eggs. — Gould ; Birds o£ Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. li., p. 332 (1865) ; Ramsay : Ibis, p. 417,
pi. 8, fig. 3 (1867) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., pi. 16, fig. 8
(1889).

Geographical Distribution. — North-west AiLstralia, Northern Terri-
tory, Queenslajid, aud New South Wales; also Celebes aud Boiiico.

Nest. — Composed of a pile of gi'een aquatic plants, half submerged
iu the water of a swamp, or placed upon aquatic vegetation about twenty
to forty feet from the shore. Dimensions over all, 6 to 9 inches ; egg
cavity, which is flat, 3i inches across.

Egys. — Clutch, foiu', rarely five ; , pynform or Plover-like in shape ;
textiu'e of shell fine ; surface exceedingly glossy ; colour, yellowish-olive,
curiously marked all over with interlacing' lines of vai-ioiis widths o4" dark-
brown or black, fomiing here and there iiTegular-shaped blotches. On
accoimt of theu' singular appearance, these eggs cannot possibly be
mistaken for those of any other species. Dimensions iu inches of a
proper clutch: (1) 1-2 x -85, (2) 1-2 x -84, (3) M7 x -85, (4) Ml x -81.
(Plate 21.)

Observatiofis. — This remarkable species — remarkable chiefly because
of its expansive feet, so beautifully adapted for traversing floating fohage
on the siu-face of lakes and lagoons — is a tropical and sub-tropical fonu.

Dr. Ramsay says ; " I know few more pleasing sights than a troop of
this handsome Parra wandering among bright-blue and ci-imson blooms
of the giant water-Ulies which abotmd in almost every sheet of water of
any extent in North-eastern Queensland. "

xVlthough the Parra or Jacana is more frequently observed in Northern
Australia, ,it is common iii some parts of New South Wales, notably the
Clarence River district, said to be its most southern limit.*

In his work, " Among Cannibals," Lumboltz, mentioning the
Parra or Lotus Bird, says : " Its simple nest is built upon the leaves
of the water-Uly. The young look frmny, on account of their long legs
and big toes as compared with their small bodies."

' The bird I reported in the " Victorian Naturalist," from Victoria, in the
collection of the Government Entomologist (Mr. Charles French) Melbourne, was
an error. I subsequently ascertained that although the specimen was purchased
as a Victorian species, it really was procured on the Clarence, N.S. Wales.

77^

NESTS AXD liCGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Mr. S. W. Jackson, of South Grafton, .Clarence River, New South
Wales, has been veiy successful among tlie PaiTas' nests in his district,
and has carefully observed the habits of the birds in their swampy
haunts. To Mr. Jackson I am indebted for a most handsome set of eggs,
which was accompanied with the following interesting data., and,
excepting Gilbert's graphic account, as fiu-nished in Go'uld, probably the
best personal observation made of the bird in Austraha ; — " I find the
PaiTa breeds from October to January in the swamps in this district.
There is always a great difficulty in finding the nests. I have sat on the
edge of a swamp for six hours watching a pair of Pawas and then I did
not find the nest. As soon as the Parras see a person approaching the
swamp, the birds, first of all, try tO' sink their small damp nest a little
below its general level. , This is done by both male and female standing
on the nest at once ; after this operation is performed, both bu'ds fiy
to the other end of the swamp and remain there a considerable time.
I have also noticed that the PaiTa, when she is sitting on the nest,
pretends to be feeding if anyone is near or anj' cattle wade out near the
nest, which is not built in reeds but in thick clumps of aquatic plants
along the edges of the swamps, about twenty or thirty feet from the
margin. The nest measures, when in the Water, nine inches across, but
when taken out and the aquatic plants die, it only measures six or seven
inches across. The eggs are usually four in niU7iber for a. sitting ; but
on two occasions I found five in a nest. The eggs are placed in the
wet nest with their smaller ends pointing inwards. These nests are
much smaller than those of Poi/irip/'x iinrif /m/hiiii/ict. and are always
much greener, with vegetation, &c."

To Mr. Jackson I am also much indebted for the splendid illustration
depicting a nest of the Parra resting upon a floating orbicular leaf of the
water-lily, smiounded by a crop of beautiful flowei-s.

Breeding season, September to February.

FAMILY— CHARADRIID^ : PLOVERS.

Sub-family — AitENARiiNiE.

597.— AuENAIilA INTEIU'IIKS. LiiHiajus. — (532)

TURNSTONE.

Figure. — Gou'd : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 3c).
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv.. p. q2.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Varioius.

QciicirnphirciJ Tiistrihviiiin . — Whole of Australia and Tasmania ; also
almost the rest of the world, breeding towards tlii' north.

.\£STS AAV EGGS Of AfSrA'AliAX BLKDS. 775

Sf^t. — A mere depression in tlie ground, liued witli a ftvv grass-bents.
Situated on a saudy or rocky soil in a bare place, 01 on a Hat covered with
heath and a few stunted bushes (Butler).

tjijiju. — Clutch, four ; pynforiu m shape ; texture of shell iiue ; surface
glossy ; colour, greeuish-stonc, boldly daubed and smudged, especially
on the lai-ger end, with umber — some of the markings have the appear-
ance of having been wiped on obliquely with a brush ; other faint giey
markings also appear. Dimensions in inches; (1) 1'55 x 114,
(2) 1-55 X 1-12.

Observationii. — The Tmiistone is a thorough " globe-trotter,' distri-
buting itself about the seashores of the world, of coiu^e including the
coast-line of Australia and Tasmania. My only sight of this lively,
restless nomad was on the mushroom-shaped limestone rocks known as
Houtmans Abrolhos, off Western Australia, where I observed small
flocks of sixes and sevens about the reefs at low water. They were
scarcely in adult plumage. The male ,and female, when fully grown,
are alike. Forehead, eyebrows, an oval spot before each eye, the centre
of the throat, ear-coverts, nape. of neck, lower part of back, abdomen,
and under tail coverts are white, the rest of the pliunage is either reddish-
brown or black, the black on the chest especially being strikmg. It has
a black bill about one inch in length, with eyes to match ; the legs and
feet are a rich orange. Altogether it is a smart, plump ci-eatiu'e, about
eight inches in total length. In youth the plmnage is more mottled,
but in all seasons and ages the Turnstone may be at once recognised by
its pure white throat. The chief food of the Turnstone is shell-fish
and insects and wonns, which it picks up amongst the stones (hence the
name Turnstone, I suppose) or seaweed. It breeds in June, on the
shoi'es of the Arctic Ocean in Europe, Asia, and America.

In 1833 Mr. Hewitson, the celebrated oologist, and his companion,
Mr. Hancock, were the firet naturalists to bring the eggs of the Turnstone
to Bxitain.

Of the forty-five or forty-six species of Charadriida- (the general
name for the family of the Plovers, the Sandpipers, and the Snipes —
some call them I^iniim/o', which, litei-ally, means dwellers in mud)
foimd in Australia, over a score, or half their number, retire annually
to the Ai'ctic regions to breed. Why do so many return towards the
Arctic regions with such surprising regularity? Mr. Seebohm states
that the Chdradriidte are unquestionably an Arctic family. They
probably originated on the shores of the polar basin, and it is not
improbable that their habits of migration were acquired in the Arctic
regions untold ages ago, when the conditions of life near the pole were
very different from now. The first migi-ation was probably in search of
light during the two or three months the sun failed to appear above the
horizon. The habit of migration thus formed became rooted in the
species, in accordance with the law of heredity (we usually call it instinct),
and doubtless gi-ew in force diuiug the glacial epoch, when intense cold
prevailed at the poles and in regions now temperate, compelling the
flocks to extend their migrations until the shores of the rest of the
world had been visited by them.

7;6

NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTJiALlAN BIRDS.

The migi-ation lasts about a month, but in oui- spring time (the
autumn of the north) it is not an imconimon thing to see a straggler or
two arrive in advance. They are supposed to be baixen or odd birds
which have been unable to mate, or birds whose nests, have been
destroyed too late in the season to allow a second nest to be made.
Having nothing else to do they give way to the migratoiy instinct, not
being checked by the parental one, and drift southward before the
main body. This prematm-e migration has its uses. When migi-ation
begins, the j'oung bii'ds are the first to move. They have inherited an
iiTesistible rmpulse to start, and are doubtless led off by the barren birds
and old bachelors. When the new birds have left (they appropriate
the first week), the second week generally marks the departure of the
males, most of the females setting oil during the third week, whilst the
fourth week is left to the cripples, which come straggling in as best
they may — birds which have lost a leg, or some of their toes, &c.
(While at Houtman's Abroliios I shot a Little Sandpiper / Liiiioiiite"
ruficdJIix) having only one leg and a stump.) In the return journey the
order is, slightly varied ; the adult males go off first, then follow the adult
females, who are followed by the young birds, and the cripples bring up
the rear.

The length of the journey in some instances is marvellous. The
cUstance from the Arctic Circle to New Zealand is approximately eight
thousand miles.

Sub-family — H.a;MATOPODiN.s; : Oyster Catchers.

598. — H^MAToPus LONGiROSTRis, Vieillot. — (498)
PIED OYSTER CATCHER.

I'igure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, ful., vol. vi., pi. 7.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 112.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs.—Q,m\\A: Birds of .Australia (iSjS),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 216 (1865); Potts: Tian-. .\o\v
Zealand Inst., vol. ii., p. 69 (1S70) ; Buller : Birds of New
Zealand (1873), also vol. ii., p. 17 (1888) ; North ; Aiisln. .Mus.
Cat., p. 299 (1889); Campbell: Proc. Austn. Assoc, vol. v.,
p. 426 (1893 I ; also Victorian Naturalist, p. 1S3 {1804).

Gcoi/nrpliiral Di^frihiition. — Coast of whole of Australia and Tas-
mania; also New Zealand, New Guinea and Moluccas.

.Yc.s7.— Merely a slight circular depression (about six inches across by
one inch deep) in the sand or in dry river beds near the sea siiore.

AVy.'/-<.— Clut<.-li, two. but in nnv cases three; iiulin.d lo an c^llipsein
siiapc; texture of shell strong; sui'face glo.ssy ; colour, pale stony-grey
moderately marked with well-defined roundish blotclies of umber" some

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 777

of the blotches ;u-e confluent, others have a smudged appearance ; there
are also a few obsolete bluisli-gi'ey markings under the surface of the
shell. Dimensions in inches of proper clutches :

Clutch A

(I)

2-44

-2-42

X
X

1-57

I 55 (sharper pointed egg)

Clutch B

(I) •
(2)

242
2-32

X
X

1-57 (sharper pointed egg)
I 57

Clutch C

(0 •
(2)

227

2-26

X
X

161 (sharper pointed egg)
163

A specimen from King Sound, North-west AustraUa, measures
2-26 X 1-57. (Plate 21.)

Observations. — This handsome Oyster Catcher, in its garb of black
and white, may be seen in almost any portion of the Australian and
Tasniaaian coast, but is more abundant on the southem coast, and
especially on the islands in Ba.ss Strait. A southern tribe of aborigines
in Western AustraUa call tliis Oyster Catcher " Quick-ham," after the
call notes of the bird.

During the expedition of the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria to
King Island, the latter half of November, 1887, we enjoyed ample
oppoi-tunities of observing these interesting shore dwellers, which were
breeding at intervals all around the island. The White-breasted or
Pied Oyster Catcher we s the commoner of the two species of " Red
Bills." Sometimes a pair of birds betrayed their nest by uttering the
loud piping double note of alarm, which became more frequent and
solicitous in tone as we approached the locality of their home. At other
times we would observe a bird ninning away in a suspicious manner
from a particular spot. Picking up its footpiints in the loose sand and
following the track back invariably led us to the nest, whicli was merely
a slight circular hollow or depression on the summit of a- small sand
dune immediately above high-water mark. The eggs were diflicult
to detect on account of the similarity of the colouration of them to
the sand round about. Of ten or twelve nests we took, none contained
more than a pair of eggs.

Dvu-ing an excvu-sion of tlie same club to the Fimieaux Group,
November, 1893, out of three nests observed of the Pied Oyster Catcher
only one contained a set of three eggs. This particular nest was situated
on Green Island, was near some herbage, and was lined with pieces of
broken shells and other debris. From Gould and Sir Walter Buller
we infer three is the usvial complement, while Mr. A. J. North
describes a set of three , taken by Mr. John Raansay at Cape Upstart,
Queensland. Nevertheless I tliink three eggs to the clutch is the
exception to the rale.

Mr. Seebohm states that Oyster Catchers are not known to breed
within the tropics on the mainland, but only on islands. But it appears
we have an exception in the White-breasted Oyster Catcher, for I have
received eggs from King Sound (North-west Australia), nearly 600 miles
within the tropics ; and near the North-west Cape, Mr. Tom Carter,
a sound field naturalist, took on the 20tli of July several clutches, and
again, on the 17th of September, a single egg from the same locality.

778 NESTS AW tGCS Ob AISTRXUAS' BIRDS.

Except one fully fledged, we did not observe on King Island the young
which Gould states are capable of riuiniug soon, and in case of danger
secrete themselves in a crevice of rocks or behind a stone. In down
they are gi'eyish-buff, with black spots on the back, and with a dark
longitudinal stripe on each side above the wing.

The breeding months are from July to January, the early months
applying to the tropical or sub-tropical coast localities.

Sir Walter BuUer records the interesting fact that this Oyster
Catcher does not always breed contiguous to the sea shore, as instances
are known, of its nesting on sandy plains a couple of miles or more inland.

599. — HiEMATOPUs uNicoLOK, Wagler. — (4'J9)
BLACK OYSTER CATCHER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 8.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. ii8.

Prtvious Descriptions of Eggs. — Ciould : Birds of Australia (1S48) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 218 (1865); Buller : Birds of New
Zealand (1S73), also vol. ii., p. ig (1888); I.egge : Proc. Roy.
Soc, Tasmania, p. 130 (1S881 : North: Austn. Mus. Cat.,
wilh fig., p. 300 (1S89) ; Campbell : Proc. Austn. Assoc, vol. v.,
p. 427 (1893) ; also Victorian Naturalist, p. 183 (1894).

tieiji/rapliicril Disfrihutimi. — Coast of whole of Australia and Tas-
mania ; also New, Zealand.

Nc.'it. — Usually a rocky ledge or hollow, not far distant from higii-
water mark.

Eijija. — Clutch, two ; elliptical or oval in shape ; texture of shell
somewhat coarse ; sui^face glossy ; colour, stony-grey, moderately
marked with irregular-shaped blotches (large and small) of umber or
dark-brown, a few duU-gTcyish splashes and marks appearing beneath
the shell's surface. Dimensions in inches of proper clutches ;

I 73 (sharper pointed egg).

'7'

173 (sharper pointed egg).

1 71

17 J (sharper pointed agg).

171

The eggs ai-c similar to those of the Pied Oyster Catchers, but are
larger in size, darker in the ground-colour, and the character of the
markings ;ts a rule are not so uniformly roundish in shape.

Ohservdtious. — Wo also found the Sooty or Black Oyster Catcher on
King Island, Bass Strait, but. although not so numerous, it was ciiually
as interesting as the White-breasted species, wilh which the sooty at

Clutch .\

(I)

273

(^} •

264

Clutch B

(')

- 7

(2)

. 2-56

Clutch C

(1)

264

12)

25

.VESTS AND EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. j-j,y

times co-niingled. Indeed hybrids, the progcn}- of the two biids, have
been kuowu. This may be the case with U. nythalmicu^ (Castehiau and
Ramsay), from the Gulf of Carpentaria, which, however, Mr. Seebohni
has relegated to the synonym of the Black species. Of tdie several
nests found diuing the Field Natm-alists' Expedition in November,
1887, to the above-mentioned island, the eggs, which were all in a more
or less advanced state of incubation, were somewhat darker in colom'
and a size larger than tliose of the other species. The Black variety
seemed ^to select a more rocky situation for its i-esting place. The eggs
I retained for my collection I took from a ridge of rocks almost
suiTouuded by water at high tide. The nest contained a few broken
shells, bits of stone, and small pieces of seaweed. The eggs recall a
historical shipwreck, for within sight of where they were taken was the
scene of the deplorable loss of the " Cataraqui," which occurred on the
west coast of King Island ni 1845, when no less than 399 souls perished.

Although I have stated the Sooty was the rarer of the two species
of Oyster Catchers on King Island, it proved to be the commoner kind
on the Furneaux Islands on the opposite (east) side of Bass Strait, when
the Field Naturalists' Club visited that locality, November, 1893. On
a rock neai" Woody Island, in Franklin Somid, three nests were found.
One, which was photographed (see illustration), and measured seven
inches across by one and a half inches deep, was in a hollow piece of rock,
sheltei-ed by vegetation ; others were protected by salt-bush. On
Samphire Reef a Black Oyster Catcher's nest was found in a. Silver Gull
rookeiy. Tlu-ee other nests were taken on a small rock in Adelaide
Bay, while the eighth nest was found in a slight hollow at the foot of
a grass tussock, and the ninth and last nest was among pig-face weed,
on the summit of a rock. All these nests contained a pair of eggs each.

Breeding months probably the same as the Pied Oyster Catcher,
from July to January, but, of coiu-se, not so early on the southern sea-
board. Young in down, like the parents, are of a unifoi-m blackish-
brown.

The Plover family, almost \vithout exception, resort to tactics
such as feigning lameness or a broken wing to entice intruders from their
nest. Some species are more demonstrative than others ; but I think
the greatest mimic of all is undoubtedly the Black Oyster Catcher, for,
according to Sir Walter Buller, if its young be approached it will not
only feign lameness, but roll and tumble on its liack as if in the throes
of mortal agony in order to attract attention whilst the downy chicks
make good their escape by taking to rock pools, diving imder the
projecting ledges, and hiding themselves in the crevices till all danger
be overpast.

;78o NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

StTB-FAMILV LuBlVANELLlN^.

600. — Erythrogonys cinctus, Gould. — (513)
RED-KNEED DOTTREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, lol., vol. vi., pi. 21.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 125.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.
Wales, vol. vii. (18S2) ; Campbell ; Southern Science Record
(1883), Nests and Eggs Austn. Birds, iig. ^13 (1883), also Proc.
Austn. Assoc, vol. v., p. 437 (1S93) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat.,
pi. 16, fig. 5 (1889).

Geographical Distri/mtiun. — Australia iii general.

Nest. — Eggs generally deposited on the moist gi-omid near the margin
of a swamp or lagoon.

E<J!J$. — Clutch, four ; pyriform in shape ; texture of shell exceed-
ingly fine and tliin ; .siuiacc without gloss ; tolom', stone, marbled closely
and in a decided manner almost over the whole surface with tine wavy
hair-Uke markings and blotches of dark-sepia or black. In some
examples the fine hair-like markings predominate, winch, limning
together and interlacing, fomi iiTegular-shaped blotches in places. In
shape and size the egg.5 exactly resemble those of the Bhu'k-fronted
Dottrel (JHyia/itu iiit.lanops). Dimensions in inches of a clutch :
(1) 1-28 X -88, (2) 1-22 x -86, (3) 1-22 x -86, (4) 1-21 x -85. (Plate 21.)

Observations. — The Red-kneed Dottrel is a rare bird, ajid a dweller
of the Interior, where it prefers muddy flats and the borders of lagoons
to the shingly river beds. Its head, back of neck, and breast are black,
throat and stomach wliite, bull'y -coloured flanks, with back and centre
of wings olive. It possesses somewhat long leg's, pink to the knee
(readily suggesting the common name Red-kneed), with the lower portion
leaden-coloured. The bill, except a dark tip, has nearly tlie same
tint of pink as the legs. Total length of bird about seven inches.
Gould could never discover its eggs, nor could his two intelligent natives
aid him with any information on the subject. It was not until ,1882
that Dr. Rams^iy described the eggs, which were collected by
Mr. K. H. Bemictl in tiie Laciilan district. Mr. Bennett says he
found the eggs, in several instances, on the damp ground at the water's
edge of lagoons, and smeared over witl^ mud, as if the birds had been
sliifting them from places to place, or pi'rhaps, as Dr. Ramsay suggests,
they were purposely smciu'ed over to prevent the eggs being detected.
The eggs in my own collection, whicii were t;iken the same season as

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 781

Dr. Ramsay's, but near a Moriay River swamp, were smeared in the
manner indicated.

The breeding months generally are from September to December.*

601. — LoBiv.\NELLL's LOBATus, Latham. — (500)
SPUR-WINGED PLOVER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. g.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 139.

Previous Descriplioiis of Eggs. — Ramsay : Ibis, vol. iii., new ser.,
with fig. (1867) ; Halting : Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 458 (1874) ;
Campbell : Southern Science Record (1883), also Proc. .\ustn.
Assoc, vol. v., p. 429 (1893I.

Geographical Distrihution . — Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria,
South Australia^ Tasmania, and interaiediate islands ; also New
Zealand (accidental).

i\est. — Merely a, hollow on a little knoll or grassy plot, usually
siu'rounded by water near the margin of a swamp. Tlie ne.sting hollow
is sometimes bai'e ; in other instances Uned with a few grass stalks, short
bits of dead sticks, &c. Dimensions, four to five inches across.

hggs. — Clutch, three to five, but usually four ; elegant in shape,
inclined to or are pyriform ; textiue of shell comparatively fine ;
surface .glossy ; colour, rich warmish-green, boldly blotched or splashed
ail over with olive of different shades. Dimensions of proper clutches
ia inches: x\ (1) 3-04 x 1-44,(2) 2-02 x 1-45, (3) 1-96 x 1-44,(4) 1-95 x 1-44;
B (1) 1-93x1-42, (2) 1-92x1-38, (3) 1-91x1-39, (4) 1-85x1-38.
(Plate 22.)

Ohservatioun. — This Plover stands proudly on long piu-plish-red legs,
with head and back of neck black, dral>coloiu-ed wings and back, with
clean white underneath parts, while the curious yellow wattle or lobes
on and hanguig from the face match the same coloured eyes. The bird
is about fourteen inches in total length, and is armed on each shoulder
with a yellow spiur. Hence, it is termed (not inappropriately) the
Spui'-winged Plover.

While the smaller Black-breasted species affects the barest parts of
plains, this exceedingly showy bird loves localities of a swampy nature,
and its disposition is much the shyer of the two species, yet when called
upon to defend its eggs or young the Wattled Plover is bold and
courageous, attacking crows and animals long before they reach the nest
by making sudden swoops upon and fairly screaming at them. On
occasions, like many others of the race, this Plover mimics actions of
distress for the express purpose of diverting attention from its nest or

' See appendix for late breeding note of this and other Limicoline species.

j82 A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

young. Mr. Lau, on the Queensland Downs, has watched sitting birds
disturbed by the approach of cattle or sheep. Tlie bird does not quit
its charge, but fmiously flaps its wings and compels the animals to turn
aside. Dr. Eamsay says it will even fly in the face of an animal in order
to produce the desired effect.

I believe the Spur-winged Plovers are partly nocturnal, feeding chiefly
at night. In the country the cries of passing birds are frequently
heard in the night.

On one occasion I found on a little " island " in a swamp on the
Lower Werribee Plains, a nest of the Spur-winged Plover containing
three eggs (two just chipped and one addled). Tlie nest was a slight
cavity in the short vegetation, lined chiefly with short rough bits of
dead sticks, and sheltered by a hchen-covered out-crop of rock. Date,
Oct. 3rd, 1896.

I have captiu'ed young about a week old the fii-st week in ,August,
and yomig have been seen in April, therefore the breeding months for
the Spiu'-winged Plover vary according to the wet seasons ; but the usual
months. may be taken from July to January, when probably two broods
are reared.

Yovuig in down may thus be generally described : collar round tlic
neck and underneath paii-s white; forehead, crown of head and lest of
upper surface mottled black and brownish-grey. The species may be
readily distinguished by the wattle-lobes on the face ; while the spurs
on tlie wings are soft and rudimentary.

Mr. Charles McLennan, who has spent mvich of his time in the wilds
of the Mallee covmtry, has furnished me with the following dingo and
Plover incident: — "I heard some Plovers making a great disturbance,
so I crept up till I could see what was the matter. A dingo and some
Plovers were at a crab-liole. The dingo kept trotting round the water-
hole apparently quite vmconcemed. Ever)' now and again the Plovers
would fly just over the dog, when he would make a spring at them with
the agility of a cat, and once or twice he all but gi-abbed a bird. I am
sure he would have eventually caught one, but he liappencd to approach
too near to where I was planted, and as there were £1 hanging to liis
scalp I could not resist tlie temptation of shooting him, and thus .saved
the Plovers."

602. — -LoBivANELLUS MILES, Boddaert. — (501)
7j. permnntus, Gould.

MASKED PLOVER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. lo.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 140.

Privious Descriptions of Eg!;s. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 221 (1865); North: Trnns. Roy.
Snc, South Australia, vol. xxii., p. 164 (i8q8).

<li(i(jrn iiJiiciil Dixtrilnitiiiii. — Norlh-wcst Australia, Northern Terri-
tory, and North Quecnsiand ; also New Guinea and Timor Laut.

^'ESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTRAUAN BIRDS. ;r83

Xestt. — A hollow in the bare gi-ound at tlu' edge of a flat adjoining a
salt marsh or a swamp.

E(j()». — Clutch, three to foiu-. rarety five ; pear-shaped or pyriform ;
texture of shell fine ; surface glossy ; colour, varies from ycllowsli-olive
to gi-eenish oUve, spotted and blotched with umber or dark-brown, or
olive of different shades, and dull gi-eyish-black. Some exceptions are
light yello\vish-stone in colour, marked with olive and dull-slate, and
resemble those in miniature of the Stone Plover ( Burhimis).
Dimensions in inches of a clutch: (1) 1-78 x 1-25, (2) 174 x 1-23,
(3) 1-74 X 1-22.

Ohxervafiiiiix. — This is tiic northern cousin of the Wattled or Spur-
winged Plover, and is found in the north portion of Australia, appre-
ciating the mangrove swamps as well as the plains of the Interior. The
Ma.sked Plover is similar in habits, size, and appeai-ance to the other
Plover, with the exception that the wattle on the face is more elongated
in shape, and the black on the back of the neck is absent.

Our knowledge at present of the nidificatiou of this elegant Plover
is not extensive. Gould mentions the breeding season as August and
September, but doubtless it extends a month or two later, and in habits
represents its southern ally, the better knowir Spur-winged Plover.
However, the eggs of the Masked Plover are much smaller than we
would have expected to find, for the dimensions of a set I have given
from the Gulf of Cai-pentaria district are onlv about the size of the
Black-breasted Plover's eggs. In that district Dr. W. Macgillivi-ay
informs me that Masked Plovers are numerous, it lieing no uncommon
sight to see forty or fifty in a flock, and that they usually lay during
January or Febniary.

Mr. Keartland writes : " Near the Fitzroy River (North-west), many
of these birds were seen, but when the rains fell they scattered to tlie
numerous swamps which were then formed. Their habits are precisely
similar to those of L. lohntus. Unfortunately the birds all disappeared
before I had, the opportunity of preser\-ing specimens. I am indebted
to Mr. Jas. Livingstone for a pair of eggs of this bird, which he obtained
near the river, on the, 8th March, 1897. They were taken from a slight
hollow in the ground, and were of a dull olive-yellow, heavily blotched
witli brownish-black markings."

784 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Sub-family — Charadriin*.

603.— ZoNiFER TmcoLOR, Vieillot. — (502)
Sarciophorus pectoralis, Cuvier.

BLACK-BREASTED PLOVER.

Figure.— Gon\d : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 11.

Reference.— Ca.X. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 154.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould: Bird.s of Australia (1S4S),
also Handbook, vol. li., p. 223 (1865) ; Ramsay : Ibis, vol. iii.,
new ser., with fig. (1867); Harting : Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 458
(1874): North: Austn. Mus. Cat., pi. 17, fig. 6 (1S89);
Campbell : Proc. Austn. Assoc, vol. v., p. 430 (1893).

Geographical Distribution. — Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria,
South and West Australia, and Tasmania.

Jest. — An indentation in the gi'ound or slight hollow on a plain,
lined with a handful of portions of dead plants, roots of gi-ass, &c.
Dimensions, 5 to 6 inches across by 1 to 1 J inches deep.

Eggs. — Clutch, fovu- ; pyriform in shape ; texture of shell, fine and
.slightly lustrous ; ground-coloiu", light olive-grey or olive-stone, marked
all over with small blotches and irregular spots 0 brown. Dimensions
in inches of proper clutches: A (1) 1-82 x 1-25, (2) 1-77 x 1-26,
(3) 1-76 X 1-22, (4) 1-72 X 1-21: B (1) 1-81 x 1-26, (2) 1-8 x 1-23,
(3) 1-75 X 1-26, (4) 1-75 x 1-23. (Plate 22.) Tlie eggs of this beautifiU
species are readily distingiushed from those of the Spur-vdnged
Plover by their smaller size and finer (smaller) character of markings.

Observations. — This remarkably fine bird is a size smaller than the
Spiu'-winged Plover, and is a frequenter more of plains than of swamps.
It is conspicuous with its black biea.st. The spur is absent from the
wing, and instead of the wattle upon the face there is an oval fleshy
excrescence on each side at the base of the bill, blood-red in the male
and flesh-coloured in the female. Of com'se, after death tlie coloiu* fades
out of these parts. The habitat of the Black -breasted Plover ranges
from Queensland round to Westirn Australia and extends to Tasmania.

Two of oiu- leading ornithologists persistently overlook Tasmania as
a locality of this species as well a.s the Spur-winged Plover. But, in
including Tasmania in the geographical range for botli those birds, I
find I am in very good company, for Colonel Legge, in his treatise,
" On the Geographical Distribution of the Australian Uviicoftr," states
with regard to the Black-breasted Plover. that "it is not uncommon in
the midland districts of Tasm.ania." while of tlie Spur-winged species he
remarks that it " is an abundant .sjjccies in niaiiv parts of Tasm.ania."
One of my early reminiscences as a boy wa.i of tlie Black-breasted Plover.

BLACK-BKEASTEU PLUVEK'S NEST

From a Fhuto by the Author.

i\ESTS A.VD HGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. ;r8-

About 1860, neai- Yaloke — in those days my gi-andfather James
Pinkerton's pi-operty, on tlu- Wen-ibee River — tlie birds were in flocks
of hundreds, and I well remember the good old gentleman pointing out
to me a nest under a low shehHng rock on the plain, and, the timid bird,
at oiu- approacli half rising with its back against, the roof of the stone,
exposed a beautiful clutch of thickly-spotted brownish eggs. These
birds are not so tame now-a^davs.

The next time 1 went nesting amongst these splendid little Plovers
I was a ga-own man. I was .stopping a day or two with Mr. Thomas
Musgi-ove, farmer, on the Wliarparilla Plains, near Echuca, Victoria.
There had been a good season for rain, and all tlie little " crab "-holes
were full of opalescent water. On the 5th August (1894), I was out
witli Mr. Musgi-ove-and his sons. We could see pairs of Plovers dotted
over the plains. Noticing one particvdar pair rise and fly round with
complainnig cries. I kept my ej'es on the spot whence they rose, and
walking -straight on through bog and swamp I came to the clutch of four
eggs, (resting, points inwai-d, in a slight hollow five inches across by one-
and-a-half deep, and lined with dead portions of stems of trefoil burrs
and roots of grass.

Returning towards Echuca two days afterwards, I found another set
of four eggs. Tlie nesting hollow was lined with short pieces of stubble,
rabbits' dung, &c. How beautifullv the dark-coloured eggs contrasted
■with the suiTounding short green grass ! This nest fonned the subject
of my photogi-aphic illustration.

The end of the following month (September), when Mr. J. Gabriel
;uid I were being merrily bowled over the Riverina Plains by Mr. Rod.
Macaulay, we captm-ed a pair of young Black-breasted Plovers just able
to fly. One gi-ew fat and plump and thrived in my aviary for nearly
two years, when a ^vretched,rat got in and ended its life. It weighed
six ounces.

It has been noted that the Black-breasted Plover, lays an egg every
day, some time before noon, till the clutch is completed, and that the
period of incubation is twenty-eight days. Dry seasons do not so much
interfere with the laying of this Plover as it does with the Spur-wing
species, which sometimes does not lay at all if theie is not the needed
rainfall.

The Black-breasted Plover is an early breeder. \Eggs have been
taken in Riverina in April and May, in South Australia in June, and
in Victoria in July and earlier. On the Darling Downs, Queensland,
where Mr. Lau thinks they breed twice a year, they usually commence
to lay in September. Therefore we may infer that the breeding months
in general include April to December, but chiefly the last four- months.
The yoimg in down of the Black-breasted or Plain Plover, which
can nui almost as soon as hatched, are finely dappled with black and
brown, except the back of the neck and tmder parts, which are light-
coloured. As soon as fledged the young and the old congregate, some-
times in immense numbers.

Why are the eggs of the Plover family always placed together with
the points inwards?. I have heard two reasons assigned. One is that
the keel of the sitting bird would fit exactlv into, say, a clutch of fovu'
60

^86 NESTS AXD EGGS Of AVSTKALIAN BlUDS.

pear-shaped eggs, and rest upon tlic points of the eggs; thus the bird
would be comfortably balanced with two on either side. The other
reason is that on account of the nest on the ground being a, circular
hollow, the smaller or tapering ends of the eggs must naturally fall or
fit into the contractiug centre of the circle. But it may be purely to
economise space that the eggs are so arranged.

604. — St)i;.\T.\i;c>i.A in.iA'ETicA, Linnieus. — (503)
GREY PLOVER.

Figure.— GciyxXA : Birds of Great Britain, vol. iv., pis. 36 and 37 ;
Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 12.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 182.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Seebohm and Harvie-- Brown : Ibis,

pi. 5 (1S76); .Seebohm: British Birds, pl. 25, figs. 7-9 (1887);

Legge : Birds of Ceylon, p. 933 (1880).

Geoffrajiliico/ Di-^frihiifioii. — Australia in general and Ta.smania ;
also. New Guinea and the extreme south of the other hemisphere,
migrating to breed on the Tundras of Siberia and other places in the
north.

Nest. — A simple shallow depression in the moss or peaty soil, lined
with a small handful of broken twigs and leaves of the surrounding
plants. Situated on low-lying boggy tracts of tundra (Seebohm and
Harvie-Brown).

Egr/n. — Clutch, four; in shape some are rather pointed and others
slightly rounded at the smaller end ; colour varies, being olive-stone,
greyish-stone, or yellowish-stone, blotched and clouded on the larger
half, and chiefly round the end, with irregidar-edged blotches of blackish-
sepia, iiuming mostly in a longitudinal direction ; the markings ai'e
smaller near the minor end, and beneath the dark colouring are smears
and traces of bluish-grey. Dimensions, in inches, from 'l'\h to 196 in
length by from 1-42 to 1-41 in breadth (Legge).

Obser rati mix. — The Grey Plover is cosmopolitan, being found more
or less .abundantly in everv portion of the globe. It is not known to
breed anywhere except in th(> timdras, north of the limit of forest gi-owth
in the circumpolar region. The western flocks pass through Central
Europe to winter in Africa, while the eastern birds cross Sibciia to
" winter," amongst other countries, in Australia and Tasmania, whore
the birds observed have been either youthful or in winter garb, and
conspicuous for the absence of the rich black belly and the beautiful
dappled grey back which arc the full summer plumage of the f.ar north.
The illustration in Gould shows the bird in its plain greyish Auslr.ill.m
dress. The Orev Plover is about ten inches in length, or .slightly
larger than the golden variety. Seebohm reminds us that in its habits

.v£srs .'[A'D i^cas of avstkalian birds. 787

and seasonal changes the Grey Plover scarcely differs from the Gokleu
Plover, and the yellow colour of the yoiuig in down, as well as of the
young in first plumage, proves its near relationship to the latter bird.

Althougli the Grey Plover was known to ornithologists as far back
a*, 1758, it was not till the 'I'lwA of June, 1875, that .Seebohm and Harvic-
Brown took the first authenticated nest in the valley of the Lower
Petehora, Russia. They record : — " We had not walked very far before
other Plovei-s rose, and we determined to commence a diligent search

for a nest After more than an hoiu-'s search we found

a nest on one of the di-y tussocky ridges intersecting the bog, containing
four eggs about the size and shape of the Golden Plover's. Tlie nest
w;is a hollow, evidently scratched perfectly round, somewhat deep, and
containing a handful of broken slender twigs and reindeer moss. Hai-vie-
Brown concealed himself as well as he could behind a ridge to lie in
wait for the bird retiuning to the nest, and after half an hour's watching
shot a veritable Grey Plover."

Confinning Seebohm's accoimt of the nesting home of the Grey
Plover, Mr. H. J. Peai-son, who visited Russian Lapland twenty years
afterwards, pleasantly writes in the " Ibis," April. 1896 : " The discovery
of these eggs has been so well described by Seebohm and Harvie-Brown,
in their paper in the ' Ibis,' that we have little to add. We feel svu-e,
however, that our brother ornithologists will sympathize with our glow
of pleasure and even our wild war-dance on finding oiu' first nest, con-
taining a clutch of four beautiful eggs. And, indeed, both glow and
dance wore needed, for few things are more calculated to chill enthusiasm
and unpleasantly lower one's temperature than watching for fifty minutes,
in a piercing wind and sleet, even a Grey Plover to its nest. We took,
in all, seven clutches of eggs (4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 1, and 3 respectively). Tlie
first two were fairly fresh. In the third and foiu-th the chicks were
calling, and their beaks partly through the shell. The fifth contained
yoiuig in down and not quite so advanced. The one egg in the sixth
was nearly hatched, and three young birds from the other eggs were
caught about the nest. In the seventh two eggs were addled, one nearly
hatched, and one young in down, caught near. The positions of the
nests were interesting : only two were on the lower groimd near the
Gobista ; one was a mile both from the sea and the river ; all the other's —
also several old nests — were on the tundra, not far from the edge of the
bluff's, which fonn the margin of the river basin. Grey Plovers seem
to prefer this position, which gives them good posts of observation and
allows them to take their young easily into the marshes below to feed.
We found a ready way of locating the nest of this bird was to watch a
pair of Richardson's Skuas hunting over the tundra, for as soon as they
approached the nest cf the Plovers, both the latter rose in the air and
drove the Skuas away. We never observed these birds breeding near
each other, each pair appearing to take possession of about a mile of
country. All tlie nests were slight depressions in the peat, lined with
a little hchen."

It is stated that Von Middendorff' was actually the first naturalist
to take the eggs of the Grey Plover. He foimd them in Northern
Siberia, but published no details concerning the circumstance.

788 N£SrS AXD LOGS 01- AUSTRALIAN BIKOS.

605. — Chauadiuus dominicus, Miiller. — (504)
G. fulvus, Gmeliii.

LESSEE GOLDEN PLOVER,

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fo!., vol. vi., pi. 13.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 195.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Seebohm : British Birds, pi. 25, fig.
5 (18S7) ; Legge : Birds of Ceylon, p. 938 (1880) ; Robson ;
Trans. New Zealand Inst., vol. xvi., p. 308 (1883).

Geoyraijliical Distributiiin. — Australia in general and Tasmania;
also New Zealand, New Guinea, and the south of the other hemisphere,
migrating to the northern portions of both the Old and New Worlds to
breed.

Nest. — A mere hollow in the grounfl upon a piece of turfy land, over-
grown with moss and lichen, and lined with broken stalks of reindeer
moss (Seebohm).

AV/'/.v. — Clutch, three In i'mii-. Two clutches collected in [Siberia by
Seebohm are thus de.scril)t'd Ijy Colonel Legge : " One set is light clay-
bull, and the other very jiale buff with an exceedingly faint greenish
tinge. The former examples are richly marked with dark sepia, in
the form of straggly-edged blotches collected in a tolerably well marked
ring round the large ends, with numerous large blotches extending quite
round to the small ends. The pale clutch is marked with sepiarbhick
clouds at the large ends aiid the. same very dark blots towards the small
ends, under which are a few specks of bluish-grey. In shape the eggs
are pyiiform, but not much compressed at the point ; the obtuse ends
are rather flattened. Tlie first clutch vaiy in size from 1'89 to 1"91
inches in length by from 127 to 1'28 inches in breadth; the second
from 189 to 1-92 inches by from 1'27 to 1'32 inches." A pair collected
in Canada is exceedingly pyrifomi ; texture comparatively fine ; sm-face
glossy ; colour, stone, heavily blotched, especially round the upper
quarter in one example, with lunber from light to dark, almost black.
Dimensions in inclu's : (1) 1-93 x 1-3. (2) 1-88 x 1-3.

Ohs<rvatii)iii?. — 'I'liis liird, also called the Asiatic Golden Plover,
breeds on tlie tundras (naked tracts of slightlv undulating land, diversi-
fied by moor, swamp, and bog, interspersed with lakes, and abounding
with reindeer moss) of Eastern Siberia, from the valley of tlie Yenisei
to the sea. It passes through Japan, South Siberia, and Mongolia on
its migration tour, and " winters," aiiioiig.st other places, in Australia.
straying as far as New Zealand. In order that " wintering," as applied
to this and other like birds, may be clearly understood, 1 should remark
that as they breed in the iKn-thern hemisphere during the summer there,
they come to us for the purpose of " wintering ' during our summer in
the soutli. Although nowhere very plentiful, the Lesser Golden Plover
visits every part of Australia and Tasmania, airiving in the soul hem

NESTS AA'D EGGS OF AV ST K.M.I AN RIRDS. 789

pai-ts about the end of October. A correspondent, ^\^•iting to " The
Argus, " states that a flock of these Golden Plovers was seen in company
with Grej' Plovers at Qucenschfl' one season (1893); and an obsei-ver in
the Riverina district supposed that in the space of live seasons he saw
pci^haps about 100 bii'ds. Gould states that its habits and general
economy so closely r'esemble those of the Golden Plover of Europe that
a description of one is characteristic of the other. Like the European
bu'd, it frequents open plains in the neighboiu-hood of marshy lands
or the sea beach, 111ns with amazing facility, and flies with equal rapidity.
Its food consists of insects, slugs, small sea moUusca, and worms.

Gould's illustration represents a bird as we see it in its " winter "
chess diu-ing the Australian summer, and its dress is of a buffy colour,
mottled with brown, suggesting the name golden. The mottle is pro-
duced by a triangular spot of pale bro\^^l on the tip of each feather.
Tlio eyes are dark-brown, with legs and feet leaden colour ; the total lengtli
of the bird is about nine inches. When in full breeding plumage in its
North Asian habitat, the bird's lores, side of the face, breast, and all
the under surface are conspicuously black. The eggs are pear-shaped,
of a very pale buff, with a. faint gieenish tinge, and richly marked with
sepia ; length nearly two inches, by a breadth of about one and a qiiarter
inches. The finding of the fii-st nest and eggs of the Lesser Golden
Plover, in latitude 69i deg., Yenisei, Siberia, is so interesting that I
give Mr. Seebohm's own words from his "Siberia in Asia" : — "The tundra
was hilly, with lakes, swamps, and bogs in the wide valleys and plains.
As soon as I reached the flat bogs I heard the plaintive cry of a Plover,
and presently caught sight of two birds. The male was very conspicuous,
but all my attempts to follow the female with my glass, in order to trace
her to the nest, proved ineffectual ; she was too nearly the coloiu" of the
gi'ound, and the herbage was too high. Feeling convinced that I was
witliin thirty paces of the nest, I shot the male, and commenced a diligent
seai-ch. The bird proved to be the Asiatic Lesser Golden Plover ; and
I detemiined to devote at least an hour looking for the nest. By a
wonderfid piece of good fortune I found it, with fovu- eggs, in less than
five minutes. It was merely a hollow in the ground upon a piece of
turfy land, overgrown with moss and lichen, and was lined with broken
stalks of reindeer moss."

In the latest classification (Catalogue of Birds of the British
Museum), Dr. Sharpe amalgamated tJie Lesser Golden Plover with the
American bird, the difference between the two varieties being so very
slight. Tlie American race is said to be a trifle larger, breeds in summer
on the moors above the forest growth from Alaska to Greenland, and
migi-ates to winter in South America. Accoi'ding to Seebohm the eggs
of the American Golden Plover are absolutely indistinguishable from
those of the Lesser or Asiatic Golden Plover.

790 NESTS AND EGGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

606. OCHTHODROMUS (^GIALITIS) BICINCTUS,

Jardine and Selby.— (512)
DOUBLE-BANDED DOTTREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. i6.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 2iz.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Potts : Trans. New Zealand Inst.,
vol. ii., p. 67 (1870);' Duller: Birds of New Zealand (1873),
also vol. ii., p. 4 (188S); Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883), also Proc. Austn. .\ssoc., vol. v., p. 433 (1893).

Geographical Distribution. — Australia in general, and Tasmania ;
also New Guinea, New Zealand, &e.

Ntst. — Merely the usual little hollow on plains in the vicinity of
the coast or in dry river beds.

Eijgs. — Clutch, three ; incUned to pyriform in shape ; texture of
shell fine and thin ; surface without gloss ; colour, of a gi-cenish tinge
or light greenish-stone (but sometimes greyish-stone), spotted and fanci-
fully streaked fairly over with sepia or black. In some specimens the
markings form patches about the obtuse end. Dimensions in inches :
(1) 1-4 X -98, (2) 1-37 X 1-0. The eggs are very similar to those of the
Hooded Dottrel (.M. cucullata) in shape, size, and character of
markings, with the exception of having the greenish tingcfl gi-ound-
colour instead of the stony shade. (Plate 22.)

Ohxervations. — This very interesting species takes its name from the
double markings — first chestnut and then black — across the breast,
interspaced with white. The rest of the under-pluniage is white, with
a greyish or brownish coat. The Double-banded Dottrel is found in
Australia in general, but chiefly in Tasmania and the intermediate
islands, and New Zealand, its breeding country.

Eggs of the Doublc-banded Dottrel have not yet been recorded from
Australia or Tasmania. The bird disappears from the mainland in
spring and, according to the opinion of Colonel Lcgge, probably breeds
on some of the islands in Bass Strait, as the young birds found in
Tasmania diuing the autumn most likely come from that locality. In
reference to the migration observed by Gould at Georgetown on the 15th
May, Colonel Legge proceeds to remark that is about the time the birds
would be arriving on a southern migration from tlieir breeding grounds.
Might tiie birds not have come from tlie breeding groinids in Now
Zealand on partial migration to Tasmania and Australia ?

Mr. J. F. Mulder has observed the Double-banded Dottrel ])lentiful
on thciplains near Geclong during autumn, but the birds all disappear
before spring. Mr. A. J. North states they ai'c common about the
Botany Swamp and flats at the mouth of Cook's River,yNew South Wales,
during April, May, and June. Tlie latest. I have seen the Double-banded
Dottrel in Victoria wa.s the 21st August (1897). when I saw several

A'ESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. ygx

biuiches exposed for sale in the Melbourne Market. They were supposed
to have been shot on the Gippslnnd Lakes, and were in splendid plumage.
I fancy these unfortunate birds were congregating prior to their intended
flight across the Tasnian Sea to New Zealand, to breed.

About the middle of August this year Mr. C. F. Belcher, of
Geelong, procui'ed a pair of Double-banded Dottrels for my collection
from a flock at the Salt Pits, Stingaree Bay. When retm-ning home,
he observed another flock of about fifty birds feeding in a grassy
paddock near the road. At my request, he kindly visited the Salt Pits
a month later (middle of September), and found all the Double-banded
Dottrels had disappeared, their places apparently being taken by fresh
arrivals of migrants — Stints, &c., from the northern hemisphei'e.

The late Mr. T. H. Potts, F.L.S., from whom I received my specimens,
when first describing the eggs of this very interesting species before the
Wellington Philosophical Society in 1869, remarked that "Our Banded
Dottrel is worthy of belonging to the family, of the Churadriidce, for it
is one of the most restless and wariest of birds during the breeding
season. On the approach of an intruder it files round and round, uttering
its note of warning ; then, alighting on some rising gi-ound, it steadily
keeps watch. During the time it remains on the, look-out it indidges
in a peculiar habit of jerking its head backwards and foi-wards, uttering
its monotonous ' twit-twit ' at intervals." It is an early breeder, as
would appear from Mr. Potts' notes : " August 2nd, 1856, saw a nest
with two eggs, Rakaia River ; September 1st, 1855, saw a nest vdth
three eggs, Rakaia River ; October 14th, 1857, young birds quite strong."

The )-oung in down resemble little browniisli pufi^s, being of a bright
sandy-yellow, mottled with dark-brown on the upper suiface, changing
to yellowish-wliite on the under parts. They run as soon as. hatched,
and with great swiftness when alamied.

Of this species Sir .Walter BuUer remarks : " In location of the nest
itself there is very little attempt at concealment, the bird apparently
trusting more for protection toi the assimilation of colouring, but after
the young are hatched out the old birds (and particulaily the female)
manifest considerable solicitude for the safety of theu- offspring, and
feign lameness or a damaged wing for alhmng intruders away, a device
which very often succeeds. The 5'oung bii'd rims the moment it quits
the shell, and is not slow to second its parent in the art of self-preservation.
Its sandy coloming makes it almost indistinguishable when squatting on
the ground, and it has the instinct to remain perfectly motionless the
moment it hears the note of alarm, even allowing itself to be handled
without betraying a sign of vitality."

607. OCHTHODROMUS VEREDUS, Gould. (506)

ORIENTAL DOTTREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 14.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 232.

Geogrniiliicdl Dl.<trihuf(in. — AustraHa in general; also the Moluccas,
Java, &c., migrating to breed in Mongolia.

792 NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Nest and Eggs. — Uudescnbed.

Observations. — Regarding tliis species Hemy Seebohm mentions that
its white belly distinguishes it from either of its allies-^the Common
Dottrel (C. iuo?'iiienus ) and the Oriental (or Lesser) Golden Plover—
in summer or breeding phunage ; but at all ages and seasons its small,
Courser-like feet are the best character.

Gilbert procured his Australian example in the Port Darwin district.
A second skin was sent to Gould from Sydney, while others have since
been obtained in various parts of Australia. The eggs, however, are
not in any collection ; but it is known tliat the bird breeds in Mongolia.

The following highly interesting note I received from Mr. Tom Carter,
Western Australia : — '' In the heat wave, as 1 was boating round the
Point (Cloates) for two days (30th and 31st December, 1895), coimtless
numbers of Asiatic (Oiiental) Dottrels were coming from sea-wards, i.e.,
from west and north-west. The beach was lined with birds resting
themselves. Strong north-east winds blew in the morning, and from
the north in the afternoon. I never saw such a migi'ation of these birds
before. It onlv lasted for tlu'ce or four davs."

608. — OcHTHODBOMUS GEOFFROYi, Wagler.— (511)
LARGE SAND DOTTREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 19 (large figure).

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 217.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Seebohm : Ibis, p. 154 (1879) ; Legge :

Birds of Cevlon, p. 942 (1880); Harting : Proc. Zool. Soc,

p. 355 (1882).

dtograiihical Dlsfrihiifnii. — West and North-west Australia, Nor-
thern Ten-itory and North Queensland, migi'ating to breed, it is
supposed, in Hainan^ Formosa and Japan.

Nest. — Undescribed.

Eggs.- — Clutch — ; oval in .shape, or slightly more compressed at
one end ; texture, of shell fine ; siu'face glossy ; coloiu% yeUowish-stone,
heavily blotched with sepia, almost black. Not unlike those of the
Painted Snipe ( lihynchcea uiistralis). Dimensions in inches of an
example collected by Mr. R. Swinhoe in Fomiosa: r36 x '95. Accor-
ding to Colonel Legge the mcn.surcmcnls va.rj' from 1'37 lo l-27x
1-05 X 1-0.

Observations. — The Large Sand Dottrel is said to be exclusively a
sea coast species, and, according to Henry Seebohm, although it enjoys
a very wide range in winter, its summer or breeding ^quarters are some-
what doubtful. It occiu-s througliout the siunmer, apparently in full
breeding plumage, on the coasts of Japan, Formosa, and Hainan, and

.VESTS A.VD EGGS Oh AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 793

lie thiiiks we may fairly assume it breeds in the latter localities, aaid
that the laiger series of eggs obtained by Svvinhoe (" Ibis," 1879, p. iril)
are referable to this species.

It was j^-obably this species (mentioned in (iould as 0. iiuiriKifm)
that Gilbert found abmidant on most of the sandy points and bays in
the Port Dai-win district. Mr. Tom Carter shot a specimen at Point
Cloates, Western Australia, about the 1st November, 1897, another
on the 4th October, 1899.

609. — OcHTHODROMUs MONGOLUS, Pallas.
MONGOLIAN SAND DOTTREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Europe, pi. 290 ; also Gould : Birds ul
Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 19 (right hand figure).

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 223.

Geographical Distributian. — Northern Tenitory (probably), Queens-
land, New South Wales, and South Austraha; also New Guinea, the
Moluccas, Philippines, &c., passing through China on migTation to
breed in Eastern Siberia and other localities.

]\'est and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Observations. — Henry Seebohm ^observes that the Mongolian Sand
Dottrel is nearest related to 0. geoffroyi, but it is also very nearly allied
to oiu' Double-banded Dottrel (0. bicincfiisj. It breeds in Asia from
Eastern Turkestan to the valley of the Amoor.

Colonel Legge mentions that Dr. Adams foimd the Mongohan Sand
Plover breeding in Ladakh, the mountainous portion of Thibet boimd-
ing Caslunir on the east. Here he found the young at the Chimourarec
Lake, but he was too late to obtain eggs. It breeds in May and June.

610.— -^fiiALiTis iiiA'n(()i,..\. Liiuiicus. — (507)
RINGED DOTTREL.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Great Britain, vol. iv., pi. 41.
Referenre. — Cat. Birds Brit. ^lus., vol. xxiv., p. i^d.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Various.

Geographical Distribution. — Arctic North America, throughout
Europe generally, wintering in Africa; eastward to Lake Baikal, and
extending, rarely, to North-west India ; New South Wales (accidental).

Nest. — Sometimes none, but generally a mere depression amongst
tufts of long grass, or scratched in shingle, with a few shells in the

794

A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

centre. Frequently just beyond the reach of water, upon httle hillocks
of saaid upon the sea beach ; also occasionally near inland pieces of water
(Butler).

Eijyx. — Clutch, foiu- ; pyrifomi in shape ; textiu'e of shell fine ;
siu-face slightly glossy ; colour, stony-grey, marked especially about the
larger end with well defined roundish blotches and spots of dark-browii
or black and grey. Dimensions in inches ; (1) 1-35 x -98, (2) 1-32 x -98.

Ohservafiotis. — Seebohni was of opinion that we claim this well-known
northern Dottrell to be an Australian bird on " verj' luisatisfactoiy
evidence," notwithstanding Gould stated he possessed an undoubted
specimen, killed at Port Stephens, New South Wales. However,
another Austrahan example may turn up some day.

It is within the bounds of possibility that the Indian Ringed Dottrel
f J?, jrrf/oiil, Legge^ may yet be found to tovich the shores of Australia.

611. — -i^GiALiTis EUFic.\pii,LA, Teuiminck. — (510)

RED-CAPPED DOTTREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 17.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 286.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 236 (1865) ; Harting : Proc. Zool.
Soc, p. 459, with ffg. (1S74) ; Ramsay: Proc. Zool. Soc,
P- 337 (iS>77l ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., with fig., p. 306
(1889); Campbell : Proc. Austn. Assoc, vol. v., p. 436 (1893).

Geographical DisfrHiiitioii. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania; also
New Guinea, New Zealand (accidental).

Neat. — Usually a slight depression in the sandy ridges of the sea beach,
sometimes ornamented with pieces of ch'ied herbage or seaweed or a few
small shells in the centre. Dimensions, about 4 inches across by 1 inch
deep.

Effff.-i. — Clutch, two ; shape, pyriform ; shell, soft in appearance and
lustreless; colour, pale stony-grey or stone-colour, marked with blotches,
dots, and minute spla.shes of dark-brown or sepia. In some clutches the
markings are finer in character and distributed over the siu-face, while
iui other instances they are more blotched or are confluent about the upper
quarter of the egg. Dimensions in inches of selected clutches :
(l>l;itc 22.)

CUitch A (i) .. r32 X -89 (sharper pointed egg)
(2) .. 1-26 X -86

Clutch B(') 1-2 X gi (sharper pointed egg)

(2) .. I 16 X 'y

Clutch C (i) .. i'2i X -86 (sharper pointed egg)
(2) .. I 19 X -88

Clutch 1) (i) .. 1-2 X -87

(2) .. 115 X '85 (sharper pointed egg)

XESrS AXD EGGS Of AUSTA'AUAiV BIRDS. 795

Oljxerriitioiit. — This, one of the smallest of our Dottrels, is readily
identified by its rusty-brown or red cap, from which it receives its name.
The rest of the plumage is white underneath and drab above. On the
forehead is a white band, then a black marking, before the bird dons
the red cap. The female is adorned with similar plumage, but in paler
shades. Tlie bill is somewhat short and dark ; likewise the legs dark ;
The total length is only 6 inches.

Like Mr. A. J. North, I liad my introduction when a boy to this
Dotti-el, on the sand}' tracts interspersed with low sciiib that stretched
in those days between Santh'idge (now Port Melboiune) and St. Kilda,
but by the wonderful march of ci\'ilization these favoiu'ite breeding
groimds of the bird have long since been supplanted by a thriving
suburb, a railway station, and a military road.

Although this endearing little shore wanderer loves the foreshore of
inland brackish lakes and backwatei-s, we observed a few members in
company with the Hooded Dottrel on the boisterous and exposed situa-
tions on King Island ; but nowhere have I seen the Red-capped Dottrel
more plentiful than on the great sweep of sandy beach in Geographe
Bay, Western Australia, where the eggs in doublets may be picked up for
the seeking. I was never fortunate enough to enjoy Mr. Noi-tli's
experience of picking up three eggs from the one nest of this species.
However, on the 25tli September, 1894, in Tasmania, Mr. C. D. Groom
saw a Red-capped Dottrel's containing four eggs, most probably the
lesult of two birds laying in the same nest.

Although generally a coastal bird, instances are known of the eggs
having been taken in the Interior. The Calvert Expedition found Red-
capped Dottrels numerous near Lake Way, in the interior of the West.

The breeding months, like those of the Hooded Dottrel, are from
September to January, November being the principal month.

Tlie young in down is white underneath, and the upper parts are
mottled with yellowish-browai and black.

My remarks on the Stone Curlew, with reference to the shai-jjer-
pointed egg being as a rule ^tlie longer of a pair, are again strikingly
illustrated in the Red-capped Dottrel. In four clutclies, selected at
random and measured, it will be seen there is only one exception
(clutch D) to the nile.

612. — iEciALiTis MELANOPS, ViciUot. — (509)
^E. nigrifrnns, Cuvier.

BLACK-FRONTED DOTTREL.

Fi!;ure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 20.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 300.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1S4S) ,

also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 233 (1865); Harting : Proc. Zool.

Soc, p. 459, with hg. (1874) ; Ramsay : Proc. Zool. Soc,

p. 336 (1877) ; North ; Austn. Mus. Cat., pi. 16, fig. 4 (1S89) ;

Campbell : Proc. Austn. Assoc, vol. v., p. 435 (1893).

Cleoc/rnphical Diatrihution. — Australia in general.*

♦ Tasmania is included on the authority of Mr. W. L. May, Sandford, who
shot one of these Dottrels in 1896; unfortunately the bird was too much mutilated
to preserve the skin.

7g6

A'ESTS A.VD EGGS 01- AVSriiAT.IAK BIRDS.

Nest. — The usual slight hollow iii a pebbly river bed, or on a sandy
ridge near water.

Efff/x. — Clutdi, three ; pyriforni in shape, with tliiu, line texture of
sliell ; siu'face without gloss; eoloiu-, of a beautiful light-stone or
yellowish-bufi, very closely and ciu'iously marked over almost the whole
surface with minute specks and short angular lines of umber ninning into
or crossing each other — intermingled are a number of dull gi-eyish
maa'kings. Under a magnifying glass such letters as an undefined Z
or K and other hieroglyphics may be discovered among the umber-
coloiu'cd lines. Dimensions of a clutch in inches: (1) 1-15 x -81,
(2) 1-14 X -85, (3) 1-08 x -83. Another type of specinuns is lighter in
general colom- and more of a. spotted nature, with the angular markings
smudged, while the obsciu'e greyish markings aa'e more blotchy :
(1) 1-2 X -82, (2) Ml X -8. (Plate 22.)

Observations. — This elegant little species haimts the sandy margin
of inland swamps and rivers, and is found throughout Australia. The
black collar and breast (from which it derives the name Blax-k-fronted)
and black facial markings are relieved by the white throat and stomach,
the remainder of the dress being a brownish mottle. The legs are
orange-flesh colovir, likewise the bill, which is tipped with black. Brown
oyes, smTounded by bright-red eyelashes, add tO' the sprightly appearance
of the bird. The sexes are alike in colom- and in size. This Dottrel
is certainly the tamest. of the species, for I have watched them in pairs
a few yards from me chasing flies along the margin of a lagoon, or wading
knee-deep after aquatic insects.

As Gould observes, this delicate little Dottrel avoids the boisterous
and exposed sea beaches, preferring to dwell on the serener margiii-s of
rivers and lagoons in the more genial climate of the Interior. That
great uaturalistj was the first to take its eggs, wliich he found deposited
on the groimd beside the Namoi River, New South Wales.

My earliest recollection of tliis tame little species was the finding
of a clutch of eggs on the shores of the Albert Park Lagoon, near Mel-
boiuTie, by a schoolfellow, about 1869.

In the MS. left for my perusal by my good friend Hermann Lau,
I find, with regai'd to /Ejiinlitis uij/rifrinis, ho says ; " It was a long time
In-fore I was enabled to find its breeding-place, because of its cunningiiess
and the similarity of the eggs to the colour of the gi'oimd. Even when I
first found the shell at Waroo (Queensland), on account of its large size,
I could not accept it as belonging to this dear little bird had I not dis-
covered near at hand three helpless yovnig in a small gravel hollow
between about half a dozen larger pebbles. Nothing soft was inside the
nesting hollow, save, remnants from insect food. On another occasion,
wiiile proceeding along a wide pebbly ridge, with the creek on one side
and an ana-branch on the other, 1 found, by mere chance, three eggs,
and observed the bird not fai ofT Birds, eggs or young, and pebbles
are all much alike in colour. There arc evidently two broods in the
season, because I have noticed eggs and young in October and again in
December.''

.VESTS AAD EGGS Of MSTKAUAA' BIRDS. ygy

Mr. Keaitliind remarks that newly-liatched Black-fronted Dottrels
are probably the most liandsome of all Australian birds in the down.
His further observations in the " List of Birds " of the Calvei-t Expedi-
tion conccrniug|this species are : " At all creeks or pools passed between
MuUawa and the Fitzioy River this active little Dottrel was found, either
singly or in paii-s, lauining along the margin of the water in search of
small aquatic insects. During August several young birds, just able
to fly. were shot at the camel depot, ;uid one fresh egg was picked up
beside a pool. On 7th November I found several paii-s of newly-hatched
young ones on the sandy bed of the Fitzroy River. Although probably
not more than a day or two old, they ran very quickly for some distance
before being caught. When one was captui'ed it invariably proved that
the other had escaped dimng the chase."

Breeding months, August, or sometimes earlier, to the end of the
year.

1 have previously menlioued one or two instances of birds
supposed to be fascinated by snakes. Here is another. Dm-ing one of
liis shooting outs, Mr. Tom Musgrove, junr., Wharparilla, Victoria,
noticed a Black-fi-onted Dottrel, which was apparently mesmeiised by
a snake close by. The snake, when killed, had a frog in its mouth.
This snake must have been a very greedy reptile. Was it going to tuni
its attention to the bird after it had disposed of the frog? Or had the
bii"d been merely attracted towards the snake out of curiosity to see
what was going on ?

613. — ^-Egiautis cucullata, Vieillot.- — (508)
^. monacha, Geoffroy.

HOODED DOTTREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds ol Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. i8.

'Reference. — Cat. Bird.s Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 302.

Previous Deseriptiotts of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of .Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p 231 (1865); Ramsay: Proc. Linn.
See, N.S. Wales, vol, vii. (1882); North: Austn. Mus. Cat.,
with fig., p. 304 (1889); Campbell: Proc. ,\ustn. Assoc,
vol. v., p. 434 (1893).

Geographical Distribution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, South and West Australia, Tasmania, and intennediate
islands.

Nest. — A shght circular depression m the sand just above high-water
mark, sometimes scantily lined with small broken stems and bladders of
seaweed and dead polyzoa.

Egffs. — Clutch, two, but usually three; pyriform inclined in shape;
textm-e of shell fine ; sm-face without gloss ; coloiu', of a beautiful soft
stony shade, marked over with numerous spots and small irregular-

;98

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

shaped iiiaikings iiiul dasla's iil' dark-brown or sepia. One egg of a
clutch taken on Phillip Island, Victoria, is distinctly paler in the ground-
colour than the remaining two. Dimensions in inches of a proper
clutch: (1) 1-4 X 1-01, (2) 1-39 X 102, (3) 1-36 x 1-01. The eggs,
excepting for their larger size, much resemble in character those
of the more common Rtd-capped Dottrel (JH. ruficapilla).

Observations. — Anywhere on the sandy shores of Austi'alia (except
the northern coast) and Tasmania may be seen the very elegant Hooded
Dottrel. Wlien the Field Naturalists visited King Island. Ba.s^s Strait,
where the birds are numerous, they could not lieljj admiring the graceful
movements of the Hooded Dottrel as it tripped merrily along the bca<-li.
The male bird is veiy showy with his conspicuous black head (lience the
name Hooded). The female differs in having her head mottled with
white. The remainder of the plumage in both sexes is whitish or
delicate cream-colour, enhanced by beautiful eyes encircled with rich
scarlet eyelashes. Tliey are exceedingly plump little birds, not quite
so large as their inland relation, the Australian Dottrel.

I well remember the last time we celebrated as a public lioliday the
anniversary of the Proclamation of the New Constitution of Victoria.
It was on November 23rd, 1884. I was on my way with anotlier field
natiualist to the Mutton Bird ( FufflDiix) " rookery," on Capo Wollomai,
Phillip Island. While rounding a little sheltered cove on that island
we flushed a. Hooded Dottrel from its nest on the shining sand. The
nest contained the full complement — three eggs, beautiful and fresh.
The eggs are by no means reacUly discovered, being speckled like the
sand whereon they are placed.

The breeding months are from September to January, the principal
month being November.

SUBr.\MILY PeLT0HY.\T1NvE.

614. — Peltoiiyas (EunuoMiAs) au.stralis, Gould. — (505)
DOTTREL.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 15.
TtefcreiHc. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 307.

Previous Dcscriplioiis of Eggs. — Ramsaj' : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.
Wales, vol. vii. (1S82I ; North: 'Austn. Mus. Cat., with fig.,
app. (iSqo) ; Campbell : Proc. Austn. Assoc, vol. v., p 431
(1893).

(I'riiiirii jihifiil Dixtrilixl ill}) . — Interior of Australia in general.

Srst. — Merely a little hollow on a mound or elevated portion of
a plain.

.\i:srs AXD EGGS Of ArSTRAUA.V BIKVS. ;(j(j

E<j(js. — Clutch, threu to Ave ; in sliapc, pyi-iform, buiiig considerably
pointed at the smaller end ; shell, thin ; surface glossy ; colour, rich deep
stone or buff, marked with small roundish blotches of umber or dark-
brown, which are distributed chiefly on the larger half of tlie egg. In
one example of the clutcii now luider notice the markings are inehned
to circle round the obtuse end. Dimensions in inches of a beautiful set
from Western Australia aa-e : (1) 1-5 x 1-06, (2) 1-48 x 1-07, (3) 1-47 x 1-05.
A pair from Riverina. New South Wales, is hot so rich in coloiu-ing,
has markings more streaked than spotted, and more of an olixe-brown
shade; there arc also imderlyiug markings of dull-grey: (1) 141 x I'Oo,
(2) 1-4 X 1-0. (Plate 22.)

The Australian Dottrel's eggs arc readily distinguished from those
of the rest of the Charadriida by the richness of their colour.

Olm-rvdtiiinx. — Little appears to be known of the movements of this
exceedingly fine Dottrel. On the Lower Lachlan, Riverina, it has been
observed to arrive diu-ing August, and after rearing yoimg depart again
in November, in large flocks.

The Australian Dottrel is clothed in sandy biifi plumage, with a
distinguishing black collar, also with a black mark across the forehead.
The total length of a bird, including its yellowish legs, is between seven
inches and eight inches. It has a very neat figure. It runs quickly
over the gromid, and feeds on worms and insects, perhaps adding to' its
diet occasionally shoots of tender herbs.

It is a noteworthy fact that the immortal Gould, in describing as
new this interesting bird in 1840, stated that probably many years would
elapse before anything was known of the habits and economy of this
interior species. Gould's siu'mises proved correct, for it was not until
1882, or forty-two years afterwards, that its eggs were first discovered
in New South Wales by Mr. E. G. Vickery, during a siu'veying trip near
Wilcanuia, and which were described by Dr. Ramsay, of the Australian
Museum. The eggs in my cabinet are from the Mui-cliison district.
Western Australia (the latest recorded State included in the geogi-aphical
range of this species), and were collected by Mr. C. Cadden in the
season 1886.

Mr. K. H. Bennett, in communicating with Mr. North, sent the
following interesting information, which I here copy : " April 26th, 1889.
Found to-day a nest of Eudromiax austral is, containing three eggs; this
is unusually early, for hitherto I have never known this bird to breed
before September or October. The eggs were placed on a small natural
mound of earth, some foiu" or five inches in dia.meter, and about the
same height above the suiTomiding ground, and completely covered with
small sticks some two inches or three inches in length. I disturbed
the bird from the nest on which she was sitting, and, noticing only the
sticks, at first thought that in consequence of the gi-oimd all being
covered with water, to the depth of two or three inches, the i-esult of
recent heavy rains, that the bird in this particular instance had departed
from the usual custom and had constmcted a kind of nest, and that she
had not deposited her eggs ; but on closer examination I found the eggs
on the bare gi-ovmd, and that the sticks had been placed carefully over

8oO NliSTS AND EGGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

them as a safeguard against the keen-eyed Crow, as whenever the old
bird should leave her nest without this covering, situated as they were,
they would have been very consjsieuous, as the little mound in which
they were placed was the only diy spot for fifty yards or sixty yards
around.'"

Mr. Bennett also found another nest of this species with two eggs
on the 29tli April, covered in a similar curioiis manner with small sticks,
and another on the 3rd May, with two eggs. In the latter instance
(hey were not covered, but were simply deposited on the loose earth
on high di-y gioimd.

The covering over of the eggs ,by the Dottrel is certainly very curious.
Mr. C. W. Brash, Boondara Station, near Booligal, Riverina, infoi-ms
me he has noticed the eggs, small ends turned downwards or inwards,
and covered with pellets of hard mud, just leaving the large ends of the
eggs visible.

Mr. Brash has found the Dottrels veiy tamo, and not particular wlure
they lay their eggs. He has observed many in the direct lines of march
of travelling sheep, on the main stock routes. In September (1897),
overtaking a teamster and while stopping to have a chat, one of the
little Dottrels was observed sitting upon its nest, about three yaoi-ds
away, apparently quite unconcerned. On another occa.sion five yoimg
were noticed in a nest fonried by the depression formed by the hoof of a
horse. According to Mr. Brash's experience five is not an unusual
number for a clutch, and the birds prefer the hlarl- soil of the plains
to nest on.

Tlie eggs I received from Boondara were collected 13th August (1897),
therefore it would appear that this Dotti'el lays dm-ing August, September
and October in spring, or diu'ing April and May in autumn, probably
according to the rain. One distressingly di-y season (1898). the birds
did not appear at all in the district of Boondara.

Mr. G. A. Keartland was the first to record this fine Dottrel for
North-west Australia. He says : " At the first lagoon we passed on
approaching the Fitzroy River, numbers of these birds were seen running
near the margin of the water. When alarmed, they rose quickly, their
long pointed wings enabling them to travel a great distance in a veiy
short time. Although on several occasions three or four birds were
disturbed nenr together, each went off by itself, either on to the open
plain or some other part of the. lagoon. On oui" return along tlic coiuse
of the river to Derby, they were frequently distiu'bed some distance
from water. Thev were never seen in flocks."

NESTS AAD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 8ui

Sub-family — Himantopodin-e : Stilts, &c.

615. HlMANTOPUS LEUCOCEPHALUS, Gould. (i'llT)

WHITE-HEADED STILT.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol, vi,, pi. 24.

Reference.— Cal. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 317.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : I'roc. Zool. Soc, p. 600

(1867I ; Potts • Trans. New Zealand Inst., vol. ii., p. 70 (1870) ;

Duller ■ Birds of New Zealand (1873), also vol. ii., p 23 (iS88) ;

Hartinj.' : Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 459 (1S74) ; North : Austn. Mus.

Cat., pi. 17, fig. 3 (1889); Campbell- Proc. \ustn. Assoc,

vol. v., p. 440 (1893).

Ge.ngrapliiciil Distribution. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania; also
New Guinea and Moluccas.

Xest. — Composed of aquatic herbage, grass, twigs, &c., built nine or
ten inches above the shallow water of a swamp. Dimensions, about
seven inches across the top, and one and a half inches deep in the
centre. In some instances, or according to the locality, the nest is
merely a depression (about five inches across by one inch deep) in the
gi'ound, on diy land, lined with a few pieces of grass.

Eggs. — Clutch, foiu- ; pyriform in shape ; textiu'e of shell com-
paratively fine ; siuiace slightly glossy ; colour yellowisli-olive or greenish
stone, heavily blotched, spotted, and occasionally streaked with dark-
umber or sepia, interspersed with dull gTcyish-black. Dimensions in
inches of proper clutches : A (1) 1-88 x 1-25, (2) 1-83 x 1-24, (3) 1-8 x 1-26,
(4) 1-78 X 1-28; B (1) 1-78 x M6, (2) 1-75 x 1-16, (3) 1-72 x M8,
(4) 1-7 X 1-2. (Plate 23.)

Ohservations. — This Stilt Plover is found in cveiy State of Australia,
and in Tasmania. But its appearance in certain localities seems to^ be
regulated, like that of so many other birds, by the wet seasons. Its
dress is easily described as white, except the wings, back, and a portion of
the back of the neck, which are glossy black. The lengthened legs are
pink ; the eyes are matched of the same colour. From its black and
white plumage it is sometimes called the Pied Stilt, and is about the
same size as the Banded Stilt.

In Dr. Ramsay's interesting remarks on this species, we read that
" in 1865 large flocks arrived in company with the Straw-necked and
White Ibises, and took up their abode in the lagoons and swamps in the
neighbourhood of Grafton, on the Clarence River, where, on my visit
to that district in September, 1866, all three species were still enjoying
themselves. A few days previous to my arrival in Grafton, a black in
the employ of Mr. J . Macgillivray, and a. very intelligent collector, dis-
covered a nest of this species containing foiu- eggs, which have been
51

8o2 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

secui'ed for our collection. The nest was a slight structiu'e, consisting
merely of a few short pieces of rushes and gi'ass, placed in and around a
depression at the foot of a clump of rushes gi'owing near the water's
edge of a lagoon,"

Writing to me from the same district (Clarence River), 1898,
Mr. S. W. Jackson states : " I foimd these birds breeding rather freely
this season on Duck Swamp, near South Grafton, on September 2nd.

" The nests were floating stiiictures where the water was deep, but
in water only nine or ten inches in depth they were built up from the
ground. They were composed of aquatic weeds, small twigs, grass, &c.,
and have the appearance in the water of those of the Black- throated
Grebe, only they are much more smartly built. The eggs, which in
every instance were four in number, are placed in the nests with the
sharp ends pointing inwards ; but in nests which were very wet the thick
end wa.s turned innennost, but for what cause I cannot tell.

" I succeeded in procuring a number of eggs, the majority of which
were fresh. They show a. great variation in size, shape, and general
markings. The nests were built about ten or fifteen feet apart, and here
and there I would drop across three or four nests only a few feet from
each other. The birds make a most peculiar noise when being robbed
of their eggs, and keep jiunping off the gi'ovmd to the height of about
two feet, croaking and flapping their wings at the same time, thus giving
a person the idea that they are dancing on hot bricks.

" In company with my brother, F. Jackson, and Messrs. L. Vesper
and V. McEnemy, I foimd another colony of Stilts breeding, on
September 11th. The nests were about , twenty-five in niunber, and
all contained young excepting foui- or five, with sets of eggs lieavily
sat on."

To Mr. Jackson I am much indebted, not only for these notes, but
two handsome clutches of eggs which accompanied them, also a photo-
graph, wluch is reproduced herein.

The eggs I desciibed in 1893 were from New Zealand (I am aware that
Seebohm treats the White-headed Stilt from that quarter as a sub-
species, while Gould and Sir Walter Buller regard it as identical with
the Australian bird), and were taken by Mr. J. C. iVlcLean on the 2nd
November, 1890, at Repongaere, Poverty Bay, from a nest placed on a
small islet or mound of earth, two feet or three feet square, rising from
a sheet of .shallow water. Tliere were two other nests on adjoining
islets — one containing foiu- incubated eggs, and tlie other one egg
(uncompleted clutch). Ten or a dozen birds were about the locality.

The young in down is of various shades of fulvous-yellow, varied on
the uppei- part with brown, and with a series of square black dots down
the back, and a broad streak of the same colour on each thigli (Buller).

Breeding season erratic. Sometimes in spring, as early as August
or September ; or in autumn as late as April or May.

'■%

iS^

V".^

M-.hlS 111- Willi l-.HhAl'IJi ^5lU.l^
From a Photo by S. W.Jack-.vn.

A UAKTEK KOOKEKV

jtSRHEt

F>om a Photo by 5. W. Jackson.

NESTS A\D EGGS OF AVSTRALIAN BIRDS. 803

616. — Cladorhynchus leucocephalus, Vicillot. — (518)
C. peduraliK, Du Bus.

BANDED STILT.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, £ol., vol. vi., pi. 26.

Keferena. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 324.

Previous Desaipiions of Eggs. — Ramsay: Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.
Wales, vol. vii. (1882) ; Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883), iilso Proc. Austn. Assoc, vol. v., p. 439 (1893).

Geoyrai)hii'<i! DiKtrihutiun. — New South Wales, Victoria, South,
West, and Noi-th-west Australia, and Tasmania.

Nest. — The bare ground, but sometimes there is a semblance of a
uesting-place lined with a few portions of dry reeds or other herbage.

Effffs. — -Clutcli, foiu- ; in shape inclined to pyriform ; texture of shell
compai'atively fine ; surface slightly glossy ; coloiu', rich oUve-stone, or
yellowish-olive, marked with spots and heavy blotches of sepia, together
with a few lighter smudges of mnber, especially , on or near tlie obtuse
end. Dimensions of odd examples in inches : (1) 1"83 x 1-24,
(2) 1-7.5 X 1-23, (3) 1-71 x 1-23, (4) 1-7 x 1-24.

Oh-iervrition-f. — The broad chestnut band on the breast at once suggests
the vernacular title " Banded " for tliis stilt-walker. The rest of the
phunage is white, excepting the wings and the centre of the abdomen,
which are black. The total length of the bird is foiuteen Inches,
including long yellowish legs, three inches, and a straight slender bill
nearly the same length as the legs.

From swampy acres, full of beautiful aquatic plants, contigiious to
the Murray River, I have flushed, in company with other water-fowl, the
Banded Stilt, which can be detected amongst the whirr of wings and
voices of the other birds by its puppy-like barking notes. As in the days
of good Gilbert, I made the acquaintance of this fine Stilt on Rottnest
Island, Western Australia, where it is locally known as the " Rottnest
Snipe." There they wade gracefully in the shallows of the salt lake,
which is evidently a favomite feeding gi'ovmd, because the birds resort
thither annually. About the middle of November (the 18th was the
precise day the season of my visit) they arrive in companies of tens or
twenties in nimiber, apparently coming from the far Interior, because
none aie observed on the adjacent mainland, and, gradually increasing in
numbers till thousands may be seen upon the face of the lake. They
remain all summer, departing again about April. During the interval
between April and November no doubt, they breed in some secluded
part of the Interior. But occasionally, especially dimng wet seasons,
the Banded Stilts may be fovmd breeding in Riverina, as in the year
when mv vovmg friend, Mr. Lindsay Clark, enriched my collection with
the pgg^ of this species, which he procvired from near Booligal. on the
Lachlan, New South Wales, the memorable wet season of 1879.

8o4 NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

617. RUCURVIROSTRA NOV/E HOLLANDI.E, Vieillot. (519)

RED-NECKED AVOCET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 27.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 333.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.
W;i!e^, vol. vii. (1882); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., pi. 17, fig.
I (iSSql ; CampbtU : Proc. Austn Assoc, vol. v., p. 439

Geograpliical Didrihiilitni. — Australia in general, and Tasmania;
also New Zealand.

Nest. — Tlie bare ground, usually near water; occasionally bits of
vegetation define the nest.

Eggs. — Clutch, four ; long oval in shape ; texture of shell somewhat
coarse ; surface lustreless ; colour, a shade of decp-stoue, or stone-
colour, with an olive tinge, moderately marked over the surface with
blotches and large spots, mostly roundish in form, of dark-brown;
also some duller markings of a slaty chai^acter appear under the shell's
surface. Dimensions in inches of a clutch : (1) 2-04 x r34, (2) 2-03 x r4,
(3) 1-92 X 1-28. (Plate 23.)

The Avocet's and the Banded and White-headed Stilts' eggs are much
alike, but the Avocet's may be at once detected by their large size.

Observations. — The Avocet is extremely like the Stilts, only that it
has its bill very much upturned, that organ i-esembling exactly a boot-
maker's awl. Its plumage is black and white, contrasted with a chestnut
head and neck, relieved by bright-red eyes, while the long legs are bluish-
green. Along with the, Stilts, the Avocet during the season is frequently
exposed for .sale in the Melboiuno shops, and its habitat includes
Australia in general and occasionally Ta.smania. It frequents the
shallows of lakes, mudbanks of estuaries, often wading, or readily
swimming if necessary.

Mr. K. H. Bennett informed Dr. Ramsay that the breeding months
embrace September and December, that is for New South Wales, and
that he took the eggs, wliich Dr. Ramsay described, from among
the herbage usually seen growing about the sheep tanks in the Interior.
The Avocet sometimes breeds in large companies, as was the case when
my examples of eggs were gathered at Ulonga, about thirty miles from
Hay, Riverina, 1879. Mr. Bennett also found simiLir colonies breeding
on the margin of a lake in the Interior dm'ing the season 1887.

During the autumn of 1900 small families of Avocets were found
breeding in Riverina (New South Wales'), and near the North-west
Cape.

Avocets' eggs would appear to be rare in collections.

NESTS AXD EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 8o>

Sub-family — Totanin,e.

618. — NuMENius cYANOPUs, Vicillot. — (535)
CUELEW.

Eigure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 42.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 350.

Geograiilticul Distrihuiinn. — Whole of Australia and Tasmaaia ;
also New Zealand and New Guinea, niigi'ating to Eastern Siberia to
breed.

Nest and E(j(jx. — Undescribed.

Ohservationx. — The real Curlew is a large bird, twenty-four inches
long, including a long ciu'ved bill seven inches in length. The general
colour of the pliunage is grey, with bluish-green legs. This bird must
not be confounded with ,the Stone Curlew of bush-men and others.

Although the Australian Curlew was first found in AustraUa, it
really breeds in Asia, and to escape the Asiatic winter^ migrates down to
Australia, and even New Zealand. Mr. Seebohm says : " The Australian
Curlew breeds somewhere in Eastern Siberia, since it occtu's on migration
from Lake Baikal to the mouth of the Ainoor, and along the coasts of
Japan and China." The eggs, however, are unknown, but by analogy
we can understand that, hke other Curlews, the Austrahan lays four large
eggs of a mottled oUve-green appearance, upon the ground in a marshy
situation. The Ciurlew arrives in goodly numbers about the same time
as the Snipe. It wanders down the east and west coasts, and has
been observed in all the States and Tasmania. Curlews feed upon crabs,
molluscs, worms, <fec., on the seashore and mud-flats of estuaries.
Westei-n Port, Victoria, is a favourite feeding ground. Regarding that
locality Mr. G. E. Shepherd, from his own observations, writes ; " I have
noticed the Curlews are always with us before August is qmte gone,
though they ai'e not found in great niunbers till towards the end of
November, when thousands are to be seen at high tide perched upon
the mangrove scrub waiting for the water to recede, at which time they
poiuice down upon the crabs, hooking them out of holes with their long
bills, which seem specially adapted for this purpose. I have made very
careful observation and inquiiy as to their time of departure, and I
should fix it as between March and June, but several reliable boatmen
state that a few vrinter with us, and odd birds are always to be seen
about Western Port Bay."

Mr. G. E. Sheplierd also mentions that it is a most interesting sight
to watch, during some autumn evening, the Curlews commencing their

8o6 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

great northern flight or migration. He has observed the birds in
hundreds, perhaps thousands, starting in long lines and flying high,
describing, as it were, the figui'es of so many huge centipedes in the sky.

Dvu-ing the expedition of the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoa-ia to
the Fiu-neaux Group, Bass Strait, November, 1893, laige flocks of
Curlews were observed on the Sampiiire Reef, south of Flinders Island,
in Franklin Sound.

619. — NuMENius PH«opus (sub-species) vauiegatus, ScopoU. — (536)
X . uropygialis, Gould.

WHIMBREL.

Figure.— GovAd : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., p!. 43.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 361.

Gtoyru lineal Diatributiun . — Whole of Australia and Tasmania;
also New Zealand, New Guinea, and the Malayan Arcliipelago, migrat-
ing to Japan and Eastern Siberia.

yeat and I'jggs. — Undescribed.

Observatiuns. — This bird is a duplicate of the Curlew, only half the
size, and is slightly smaller than the Whimbrel of Em-ope, with which
some authorities believe the Austr-alian bird is identical. The Australian
Wliimbrel, also like the Curlew, breeds somewhere in Eastern Siberia,
passing along the coasts of Japan and China on migration to Australia
and Tasmania, but it also " winters " in India and other intermediate
localities. I have observed Whimbrels both on the east and west coasts
of Australia. I especially remember a number iimiiiug about the flat
on a creek behind TownsviUe, Queensland. The birds were tame and
appeared exceedingly hungiy, judging by the way they eagerly probed
the moist ground in searcli of food. Perhaps they had just amved
from one of their long flights. It was then early in September.

620. — Mesoscolopax minutus, Gould. — (537)
Numenius minor, S. Miiller.

LITTLE WHIMBREL.

figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, to!., vol. vi., pi. 44.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. x.\iv., p. 371.

(.'eDgrapIiira/ Dhtrihution. — Australia in general ; also the Moluccas,
migi'ating through China and Japan to breed in Mongolia .ind Eastern
Siberia.

Nest and Egg'<. — Undescribed.

NESTS AXD EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. Su/

Oh.-tervatiuns. — As its uame uiiplies, this bii'd is a small edition of
either the Cm-lew or Whiiiibrel. It is foiuid in tlie coastal localities
dui'ing Slimmer in Australia in general, but has not been observed in
Tasmania. It likewise migrates from the Northern Hemisphere,
followiug in the track of its larger congenei-s.

Diuing the first week of October, 1896, Mr. T. Carter wrote that
Curlews and Little Whimbrcls appeared at Point Cloates, near the
North-west Cape of Australia.

Gould mentions having shot a pair of Little Wliimbrels out of a flock
of about twenty which was flying over the racecoiuse at Maitland, New
South Wales, 4th April, 1839. Judging by the date, the birds, after
spending a summer in Australia, were probably flocking to letiuTi to the
land of their- nativity, in the far away north — Siberia.

On the plains of North-west Australia these birds may often be
noticed. Their mode of flight against the wind closely resembles that
of the domestic Pigeon. On aUghting on the ground they immediately
become very active in their search for food, which consists of insects,
especially grasshoppei-s, and a few small seeds.

Throughout my general observations on the Plovers, &c., family, 1
have frequently alluded to the name of the late Mr. Henry Seebohm.
Mr. Seebohm made a life study of his particular feathered friends, the
members of the extensive order Limicolce tracing as many as ii ;
coidd to their breeding grounds within the Arctic Circle, both in Europe
and Asia, likewise following them to their wintering quarters in South
Africa, and has left to posterity a monument of original researcli of the
most instructive and fascinating kind in his work, " The Geographical
Distribution of the Family Gharadriidce, or the Plovers, Sandpipers,
Snipes, and Their Allies." However, the eggs are still lmkno^vll of
many of the Australian species, such as the Curlew, the Whimbiels, the
Great and Little Sandpipers, and several others. Is there no enthusi-
astic Australian oi-nithologist or oologist to follow these birds till they
give up their secrets as Mr. Seebohm did the British birds?

I feai- it will not happen in my day, or my son's ; but I prognosticate
some of oui- gi-and-children will yet follow these birds to their breeding
haimts. No Australian oology will be complete without the description
of the eggs of these migi-ants to the far off frigid zone.

Let me close with an extract from Mi-. Seebohm's own grapliic
description of what he terms " The Paradise of the CharadriidcE " :
" Winter is finally vanquished for the year, and the fragments of his
beaten army ai-e compelled to i-etreat to the triumphant music of
thousands of song-birds, amidst the waving of green leaves and the
illumination of gay flowei-s of every hue. The transfoniiation is perfect.
In a fortnight the endless waves of monotonous white snow have
vanished, and between the northern limit of forest gi-owth and the shores
of the Polar Basin smiles a fairy-land full of the most delightful little
lakes and tai-ns, where Phalaropes swim about amongst Ducks, and
Geese, and Swans, and upon whose margins Stints and Sandpipers trip
over the moss, and the stranded potamogentons, feeding upon the larvae
of mosquitoes or on the fei-menting frozen fruit of last year's autumn.
It is incredible how rapidly the transformation was completed. Twelve

8o8 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

houi-s after the snow had melted, the wood-anemone was in flower, and
twenty-four hours afterwards the yellow flowers of the mai-sh marigold
opened. In a short time the country was like aii English garden inin
wild. On the Arctic Circle wild onions, wild rhubarb, pansics, Jacob's-
ladder, pui-ple anemones, dwarf roses, and a huncUxd other flowei's made
the country quite gay ; wliilst on the tundi'as wild fniit of various kinds —
crowben'y, cranbeny, cloudberry, Arctic strawberiy — were blended with
reindeer moss and other lichens, together with the most characteristic
of Alpine flora.

" Although the first rash of migratory birds across the Ai-ctic Circle
was almost bewildering, evei-y piece of open water, and every patch of
bare gi-ound swarm mg with them, a new species, on an average, aiTiving
eveiy two hom-s for several days, the period of migi-ation lasted more
than a month. Veiy little migration was observable mitil about the
22nd of May, although a few stragglers amved earUer, but during the
next fortnight the migration was prodigious. In addition to enormous
numbers of Passerine (perching) birds, coimtless flocks of Geese, Swans,
and Ducks anived, together with a great many Gulls and Terns and
birds of prey. During the next fortnight, from the 5th to the 19th
June, fresh species of Passerine birds continued to arrive, and the main
migration of the species belonging to the family Vhdradriidu: (Plovers,
&c.), took place. The Common and Pin-tailed Snipes were the first to
arrive, in company with the Australian Golden Plover on tlio 5th. The
Wood Sandpiper and Temminck's Stint amved on the 6th. The Golden
Plover arrived on the 7th, and the Ringed Plover with the Terek Sand-
piper (Australian species) on the 8th. The Ruff and tlie Dottrel arrived
on the 9th, and the Great Snipe on the 11th, and the Common Sandpiper
(Australian) on the 12th. On the 15tli the Green Sandpiper, the Red-
necked Phalarope, and a solitary Curlew Sandpiper (Australian) aiTived.
Although migration continued imtil the end of the month, dming which
many new species of Passerine anived, I did not ;idd a new species of
Charadriine bird to my list until wc reached the tiuidra beyond the
limit of forest growth."

621. — LiMosA Nov^ ZEAL.\NDi.s;, Gray. — (521)
L. urupyyiaJis, Gould.

BARRED-RUM PED GOD WIT.

Figure, — Gould : Birds of .Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 2g.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. ,\xiv., p. 377.

Previous Description oj Eggs. — .Middendorff : Sibir, Reise, V6g., pi.
19, fig. 5 (1S51).

(leagrti iiJiiid! Diatriliiitioit. — -Australia in general, and Tasmania;
also New Zealand, other Oceanic localities, and the Malayan Archi-
pelago, migrating through China ,ind Japan to the regions of Eastern
Siberia and Alivska.

NESTS AXD EGGS 01- AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 80Q

Nest and Eggs. — No doubt resemble those of the Bl.ock-tailed Godwit
(Limosa limosa).

Observations. — Tliis bii'd is the eastern ally of the Bar-tailed Godwit
of Eiu'ope, and, as Mr. Seebohm obsei-\-es, it is impossible to say wlici-o the
two foniis meet, but lie suggests most probably on the Taimyr Peuiusula.
The eastern colon}- of these Godwits passes the coasts of Japan, Man-
churia and China on migration, and winter in the Malayan Ai-chipelago
and Australasia. Its presence has been noted in all the States, Tasmania,
and in some of the outlying islands of the South Pacific, One October
(1898), I saw scores of them exhibited for sale in the Melboiu-ne mai-ket.

Mr. Borcligre\iuk, of Antai'ctic fame, showed me three of the bii'ds
which lie shot on one of the islands of the far south — Campbell, I think
it was — duiing the cruise of the whaler " Antarctic," 1894. Of coiu-se
we usually only see the BaiTed-rumped Godwit here in its winter or non-
breeding di-ess, which niaj' be described thus — all the upper surface is a
mottled brownish-gi'ey ; iiimp and upper tail coverts conspicuously ban'ed
(hence the vernacular name) with bro^vn and white, while the midemeath
pai'ts of the bnds are greyish-wliite. Tlie lengthened bill is liglit-colom-ed
at the base, blending into a brownish tip ; legs dark-brown or black.

However, Gould mentions ha\-ing received from Mr. Waterhouse,
Adelaide, a specimen, which was said to have been obtained in the
Northern Territoiy, in red or summer dress. The bird in its winter
plumage so resembles a large Snipe that it is frequently mistaken for
one of the family ; and, like the Snipe, is excellent eating. Gould foimd
the Ban-ed-iiimped Godwit in gi-eat abimdance in company with Ciuiewy,
Oyster Catchei-s, and Sandpipers at Pitwater, in Tasmania, feeding on
the extensive flats left bajre by the receding tide. That gi'eat
ornithologist also observed it on the sandy flats of Spencer Gidf, and on
the sandbanks at the mouths of rivers in New South Wales, and there-
fore we may easily suppose the bird is found in like situations tlu-oughout
the whole of our coasts. Its chief food is smaU-slielled moUiisca and
marine insects of various kinds.

The ancient Middendorff gives a figine of the egg, but does not
describe it ; nor does he describe the nest — merely mentioning that
it is hard to find on the maishy meadows of the tundias.

622. — Limosa limosa, Linnaeus. — (520)
A. melanuroides, Gould.

BLACK-TAILED GODWIT.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 28.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 3S1.

Previous Dcscriptiotis 0) Eggs. — Taczanowski : Journ. Orn., p. 104 (1S73) ;
Legge : Birds of Ceylon, p. 835 (1880) ; also others.

Geographical Distrihutiou. — Northern Temtoiy, Queensland, New
South Wales, Victoria and South Australia, migrating to Eastern
Siberia to breed.

Sio NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Nest. — Composed of di-y grass and other herbage, concealed amongst
coarse vegetation in low-lying or marshy land (Butler).

Egys. — Clutch, four ; pyriform in shape ; texture of shell somewhat
coarse ; siu'face slightly glossy ; coloui-, light-olive, blotched in some
examples obscurely with olive of different shades. Dimensions in inches
of a set: (1) 2-17 x 1-5, (2) 2-1 x 1-54, (3) 2-09 x 1-52.

Ohservatiuns. — Tliis is the rarer of the two species of Godwits that
visit Australia, where it has been noted in the Northern Territoiy,
Queensland. New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia. In size
or total length it is fifteen inches, or about the dimensions of the
preceding species. Head and upper surface are greyish-brown, with a
small streak of black down the centre of each feather ; wings ban-ed with
white ; imderneath parts white, except the chest, which is inclined to be
mottled with grey. The slender legs are greenish gi"ey. with a long bill
the same coloiu". Of com'se, in common with the other Godwit, its
northern or breeding plumage would be much browner in colour. This
black-tailed variety, or, as Mr. Seebohm calls it, the Siberian Black-tailed
Godwit, breeds in the Altai Mountains^ the basin of Lake Baikal, and
throughout the valley of the Amoor, and, on migi-ation south, follows
the coast lines for the most part.

However, in the " Catalogue " of the birds of the British Museum,
the eastern and western races of the Black-tailed Godwits are merged into
one under the old familiar name Liiiwaa linioaa.

Dr. Taczanowski, writing to Mr. Dresser respecting the Black-tailed
Godwit on the Vistula, says : " Usually they begin breeding early in May,
and about the middle of June young may be found fully fledged. They
generally breed in societies, in tolerably damp places covered with high
thin herbage, where there are tussocks or small diy places ; but also in
fields (in scattered pairs or small colonies) and in small marshes covered
with grass and bushes. On the top of a tvissock or a dry place they make
a depression about three inches deep, and line it carefully and neatly
with diy gi'ass, depositing foiU' eggs, which both male and female sit
on. |If a human being approach their nesting colony, they meet him
when some distance from it, uttering loud cries aad retm-niug agaui and
again in larger numbers as he comes nearer to their nests. Wiien he is
amongst the nests all the birds fly ovoi-head, uttering a continued lamen-
tation. If the intruder remains there any time, they become tamer,
and a few return to their eggs, especially if the latter are hard-set."

623. — ToTANUS STAGNATiLis, Bechslcin. — (530)
LITTLE GREENSHANK.

higurc. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 37.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 422.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Thienemann : Abbild. Vogeleiern,
pi. 64 ( ): Legge: Birds of Ceylon, p. 847 (1880): also

others.

Geogra/iliiai/ DislriliiitKin. — South Queensland and New South
Wales; also New Guinea, Malayan Archipelago, Africa ami India,

XESTS A.\D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 8ll

migrating to breeding gi'ounds in North-eastern Asia and extending to
Southern Eiu'ope. .

Xest. — No doubt similar to that of the bird's larger relative, the
Greenshank (Glottis nebu/ariuxj.

Eyys. — Clutch, thi'ee to four ; pyriform in shape ; textm-e of shell
fine ; surface glossy ; coloiu', rich stone, somewhat heavily blotched and
otherwise marked with dark-brown or chestnut and dull piu-plish-giey.
Dimensions in inches : (1) 1-57 x 1-08, (2) 1-48 x 1-09.

ObservatiuKS. — This species is generally termed the Marsh Sandpiper,
and, as its name impUes, is just the Greenshank in miuiatvu-e. Its eggs
also, except for their smaller size, are a fac-siniile of those of the Gi'een-
shank. With reference to the Little Greenshank Mr. Seebohm remarks
that its breeding range extends from the delta of the Rhone and the
valley of the Danube, thiough South Russia, North Persia, and Tui-kestan
to Southern Siberia. In Australia the bird has only been recorded for
Queensland and New South Wales, but doubtless it has visited the coast-
line of Northern Australia.

624. — Heteractitis brevipes, Vieillot. — (531)
Guiiihetta pulveruleiitu-s, Miill.

GREY-RUMPED SANDPIPER.

Figure. — Gould: Buds o£ Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 38.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 449.

Geijgni iiltical Bistrihution. — West and North-west Australia, Nor-
thern Territory, Queensland, and New South Wales; also New Guinea
and Malayan Archipelago, migrating through Cliina and Japan to
Eastern Siberia.

Se.U and Eyya. — Undescribed.

Observatioii.-i. — The shores of Northern Austraha must be a fine field
for the waders from the further north to vsdnter on, judging by the
number of kinds Gilbert noticed or procured at Port Essington and the
Port Darwin district. In the salt-water lakes and swamps at some
seasons of the year he saw the Grey-rumped Sandpiper in vast flocks
in company with Stints and Plovers. Mr. Tom Carter saw similar
flocks of the Sandpiper near the North-west Cape, November, 1899.
At one shot he bagged no less than eight birds.

The Gi'ey-mmped Sandpiper, which is closely allied to H. incanus, is
not uncommon on the Sydney side of the coast.

Seebohm, who calls the bird in the vernacular the Asiatic Wandering
Tattler, states that it breeds in Eastern Siberia, from Lake Baikal to
Kamtschatka, and passes along the coasts of Japan, China, FoiTUosa and
the Philippines, to winter in the islands of the Malay Archipelago and
Austraha.

8 12 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

625.— Heteractitis incanus, Gmelin.
AMERICAN GBEY-RUMPED SANDPIPER.

Figure. — Baird, Cassiii, and Lawrence : Birds of North America,
pi. 88.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 453.

(Jeugra phical Dixtrihutioii. — Nortli Queeuslaud, across Oceania, to
the Galapagos Islauds, and migi'ating along tdie Pacific coasts of Nortli
America to Alaska.

Nest and Eggs. — Uudescribed.

Observations. — I believe the time H. incanus, or American Grey-
riunped Sandpiper, occasionally touches the north-eastem shores of Aus-
tralia.

Although the eggs are yet undescribed, this tnily " Wandering
Tattler " is supposed to breed, in its beautifully-barred j>limiage, in
Alaska and the Aleutian Islands^ then passes along the coast of California
and the Galapagos Islauds to winter among the Polynesian Islands.

Some yeai's ago I received a specimen of this bird from the guauo
depot of Messrs. Grice, Simmer & Co., of Melboiu-ne, at Maiden Island,
ini the Mid-Pacific. I forwarded it to Mr. Seebohm, who replied with the
following interesting remai-k : — "The Sandpiper is Totanus incanus,
which breeds in Alaska, but can only be a wmter visitor to Maiden,
lliis you can prove by the date. It is in newly moidted breeding dress.
If ifc IS going to Alaska to breed the date ought to be March, April, or
May. If it is going to breed in the southern hemisphere the date is
probably about September." The skin was drab-coloiu'ed above breast,
and flanks speckled with brown. When fresh the legs and feet should be
pinkish-red. In fact, in size and structiu'e the bird resembles the Red-
shank of the British Islands.

626. — Tringoides hypoleucus, Linnaeus. — (528)
COMMON SANDPIPER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 35.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 456.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Various.

O'eugrajj/iicat Distribution. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania;
also Now Guinea, Africa, India, <kc., migrating to the north of the Old
World to breed.

Nest. — A mere hole, lined with diy grass and moss, or witiiout any
lining; situated amongst herbage u{K)n the banks of a stream, in a gravel
l)cd amongst pebbles, or in irregularities ujion the surface of a bare rock
(Butler).

NESTS AND EGGS OF ACSTRALIAN BIRDS. 8lj

Eyyx. — Cliitcli, foiu"; pyrifomi iii shape; textui'e of shell fine;
sui-face glossy ; coloiu', stony -grey, metliiuuly marked and spotted with
umber or reddish-brown and obscui'e grey. Dimensions in inches :
(1) 1-45 X 1-04, (-J) 1-44 X 1-02.

OhxervattDnii. — The Common Sandpiper is well named, being common
not only to Australia, and Tasmania, but to many other parts of the
world, including Great Britain, where it is familiarly known as the
Simimer Snipe. In any of oui- colonial museiuns its figiue may be studied
in a homely di'ab or brownish dress marked with darker coloured bars,
while the luidenieath parts are much lighter. Tlie legs are yellowish-
green. Total length, between seven and eight inches. Gilbert, who
procured Goidd's specimens in the Northern Territory, remarks :
" Although solitai-y in its habits, I have seen three or four together.
They were mostly observed inhabiting the beds of mangroves, over the
roots of which, just above the water, they were very actively engaged
in searching for their food (insects, Crustacea, &c.), the tail being in
constant motion. Occasionally I saw solitaiy individuals on the margins
of the lakes inland."

Its eggs have never been taken in Australia, but in Eiu'ope it con-
structs a slight nest amongst herbage, in which it deposits foiu- somewhat
lai'ge eggs of a. warm, stony-gi-ej' colour, marked with numerous roundish
spots of imiber.

627. — Terekia cinerea, Giildnest. — (527)
TEREK SANDPIPER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 34.

Reference. — C=it. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 474.

Previous Deuiiplions of Eggs. — Dresser : Birds of Europe, vol. viii.,
p. 200 (1871) ; H arting : Proc. Zool. See, p. 454 (1874);
Legge : Birds of Ceylon, p. 839 {1880) ; Campbell : Southern
Science Record (1883).

Geoiji-aphicaJ Distrihution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
and South Australia; also Africa, India, &c., migrating to Northern
Siberia and North-eastern Europe to breed.

Neitt. — Simply a slight saucer-shaped hollow in the gi-omid, lined with
chips of wood and bits of thick reed, situated in open marshy pai'ts of
an alder thicket by the sides of a creek, or on the sand amongst bent
grass (Alston and Harvie-Brown).

Eggs. — Clutch, — ; pyrifonn in shap3; texture of shell fine;
surface glossy ; colour, warm or rich stone, blotched and spotted with
rich or deep umber and dull pui-plish-grey. Most resemble those of the
Common Sandpiper (Triutioiilcn hypoleiirux). Dimensions in inches:
(1) 1-5 X 1-05, (2) 1-5 X 1-03.

8 14 NESTS AXD EGGS OF AVSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Observation.t. — Gould shot a single example of this species on the
River Mokai, in New South Wales, on July, 12, 1839. The second
record was by a Mr. Waller, who killed one near Brisbane in May, 1869,
and since then birds have been obtained in South Australia. Roughly
described, the Terek Sandpiper is drab-colovu-ed above and lighter on
the underneath paits, somewhat short, brownish-orange legs, and long
bill (two inches), slightly upturned,, of the same coloiu-, but passing into
black towards the point. Total length of bird, eight and a half inches
Mr. Seebohm says it appears to be the Arctic form of the Common
Sandpiper; while Dr. Latliam states that in the siunmer of the north
it is niunerous in the neighbom-hood of the Caspian Sea, particularly
about the mouth of the Terek River (hence the name), where it breeds,
and that it is usually met with in flocks in the marshes, especially on the
borders of the salt lakes.

More recently Russian naturalists have found the Terek Sandpiper
nesting in the valleys of the Volga and Ural rivers, while Chomiakoff
found eggs and young in another locality on the Oka, to the south of
Moscow ; therefore, although Messrs. Alston and Harvie-Brown found
the species nesting in abundance at the north of the Dwina, in June,
1872, the Terek Sandpiper is evidently not strictly an Arctic breeding
species.

628. — Glottis nebularius, Gvninerns. — (529)
GREENSHANK.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 36.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 481.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Various.

Geor/r/iphiral Dixtrihtitinu. — Australia in general and Tasnnnia ;
also Africa, India, &c., migrating to breed in the north of the Old
World.

,V<.s^ — A shallow depression in a dry tuft of grass, lined sparingly
with dry, wiry grass and fragments of heath. Situated in or on the
borders of marshy ground, by the side of a lake, or in open forest, often
at some distance fi'om water (Butler).

Eggs. — Clutch, four; exceedingly pyrifoim in shape; Icxtmc, com
paratively fine ; surface glossy ; coloiu', vai'ies from stony-grey to rich
stone, blotched and spotted, especially about the apex, with rich reddish-
brown or umber and dull purplish-grey. Dimensions in inches of odd
examples: (1) 1-96 x 1-4, (2) l-!).') xVs ; of a pair: (1) 1-9 x 1-32,
(2) 1-84 X 1-36.

Ohgervf/tioiix. — The Greenshank, it is interesting to note, is exactly
tiie same species that is found in the British Isles. Ovn- vi.sitors probably
breed about the Arctic Circle in Siberia, coming to Australia by way of
Eastern Asia and down tln' Mnlay.iii Areliipelago. In the season it

NESTS AXD EGGS Of AUSI'RAr.lA.V B//!DS. 815

is foiumon to Axistralia in general, and Tasmania,* frequenting the
sandy banks oi rivers ;uid lakes, and is particularly fond of niollusca and
cnistacea found on the mud flats at the estu;uies of rivei-s at low tide,
where the Greenshank is often seen Lti smaE flocks in company with
Cm'lews. Whimbrels, &c. Tlxe bird's name, Greenshank, at once betrays
its identity, for its stilt-like shanks are gi-eenish in coloiu', while its
plumage is beautiful, being greyish mottled on the back, with nunp,
tail, and most of the imderncath parts pvu'e white. The eyes and bill
(which is 2j inches in length) ar-e dark. The total length of the bird
is 14 inches.

According to Colonel Legge, tlie Greenshank breeds in May and June.
On tlie 12th of the fonner month Micldendoi-ff foimd it already at its
breeding haunts in North-eastei-n Siberia, and its eggs were taken by
Seebohm and Harvie-Brown on the Petchora on the 11th June.

629. — Bartramia longicauda, Bechstehi. — (514)
BARTRAM SANDPIPER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., supp , pi. 77.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. .Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 509.
Previous Descriftiom of E^gs. — V arious.

Geogra phical Distrihution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria and South Australia, migrating across Oceania to North
America ; also visits South America, and accidental tO' Europe.

Nfst. — Upon the ground on a gi'assy plain or pa.stnre.

Ei/tju. — Clutch, foiu' to five ; pyrifonn in shape ; texture of shell
comparatively fine ; surface slightl)' glossy ; colour, warm, stony-grey,
blotched and spotted, especially on the larger end, with imiber and grey.
Not milike in appearance those of the Common Sandpiper (Tringoidex
liypohucus), onlv double the size. Dimensions in inches of a proper
clutch: (1) 1-75 X 1-28, (2) 1-72 X 1-29, (3) 1-69 x 1-36, (4) 1-65 x 1-3.

Oh.tervrifinns. — This is a tall, gaunt bird, about 12 inclies in length,
and it is of interest, because it wanders to us from the sonthem provinces
of Canada and the northern portions of the United States. It has
been procured in nearly all oiu- Slates. In Victoria, Cormt Castelnau,
so Dr. Ramsay says, obtained his specimen in the Melbomme market.

Baird, Brewer and Ridgway, in " Water-Birds of North America,"
mention tlie Bai-tram Sandpiper as " breeding over Canada and United
States from Pennsylvania northwards, more commonly in the Interior.
A nest found at Carlisle, Pennsylvania, wa.s a mere depression in a

' The first Greenshank from Tasmania was reported to have been shot by Mr.
J. Carr, Launceston, on the mud flats of the Tamar, 1892. I believe other birds
have since been noted

8i6 .VESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ploughed field, with only a few pieces of decayed gi'ass stems to keep the

eggs from the damp soil In Pennsylvania, the iCggs are

hatched out early in June, and there, as elsewhere, only a single brood
is raised in one season. The nest is always placed in an open situation,
but notwithstanding this circumstance it is not easily foimd without
the aid of a good dog trained for the purpose."

Sub-family — Scolopacin^ : Snipes.

630. — Calidris akenaeia, Linnaeus.
SANDERLING.

I'igure. — Gould : Birds of Great Britain, vol. iv., pi. 66.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 526.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Newton : Proc. Zool. Soc, pi. 4, fig.
2 (1871); Feilden— Nares : Voy. Polar Sea, vol. ii., pi. i
(187S) ; Seebohm : Britiih Birds, pi. 27, fig. S (1887).

Geographical Distrihiifioii. — West and North-west Australia, North
Queensland and New South Wales; nearly cosmopolitan, and breeding
in the Arctic regions.

Nest. — Slight, made of a. little dry gi-ass and leaves (Seebohm).

Ef/i/>!. — Clutch, four; colour, buffish-olive, tliickly mottled and
spotted with pale olive-brown and with a few indistinct underlying
markings of violet-grey, the ma.jority of the mar-kings being on the
larger ends. Dimensions in inches: from r44 to 1'33 in length by
from -99 to -92 in breadth (Seebohm).

Ohservafioii.t. — The Sanderling is easily recognised by the absence of
a hind toe. AccorcUng to Henry Seebohm, this wandering bird doubtless
breeds on all the coasts of the Arctic Ocean, though its iggs have only
been taken on the Anderson River, in Grinnell Land, Greenland, Sabine
Island and in Iceland. On the Asintic coast he himself shot it in July,
MiddcndorfF observed it on the Taimyr Peninsula, while it is a common
bird in summer in Alaska.

On its migi-ation southward to winter in various countries, tho
Sanderling no doubt is a regular visitor to the north-west coast of
Australia, judging by the field notes Mr. Tom Caa-ter has furnished me
with from time to time.

However, the first intimation wo have of the Sanderling being an
Australian bird is found in Ca])taiii (afterwards Rear-.Vdiiiiral) Stokes's
" Discoveries in Australia," vol. ii , p. 2.'j4. WlieninHalifax Hay, North
Queensland, June, 1841, ho wrote: "Our game bag was thinly lined
with small Curlews, Oyster Catchers, and Sanderlings."

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. gl"

Professor Alfred Newton has recorded the following note in the
'■ Eecords " of the Australian Museum, Sycbiej' (1892) : — ' Having lately
occasion to investigate the range of the Sanderling (Galidris arenaria),
T came across a memorandum made in the year 1860 of my having seen
in tlie Derby Museum at Liveiioool two specimens of the larger race of
this species, one in winter dress and the other in incipient spring plumage,
botli marked as females, and as ha\ang been obtained at Sandy Cove,
in New South Wales, 20th April, 1844, by the late John Macgillivray."

At a meeting of the Royal Society of Victoria, 8th November, 1894,
I read a note on the occiuTence of the Sanderling on the west coast at
Point Cloates, near tlie North-west Cajje.

Mr. Tom Carter kindly forwarded a skin to me with the following
memorandum : " I was out with my gun last week (middle of July, 1894),
and after a shot at a pai-ty of wadei-s I picked up eight Tiu-nstones, two
Little Sandpipers (Limonites rtificnIliH? ), and two birds , as per skin
herewith. I take it to be the Sanderling. You will observe there is
no hind toe. The other bird was too much smashed to make a skin."

The skin I passed on to Colonel Legge, who is much interested m the
distribution of oiu- Limicohne birds. He replied : " Calidrix arenaria
in abraded phunage, with new winter feathers coming on back of wings."

Since then Mr. Cai-ter has fiu-nished further and somewhat regular
data regarding the Sanderling, Tlie following I extract from his letters :
" On the 22nd September, 1895, I shot another Sanderling at the same
place as last year, and out of a, flock of Waders. I had a stroll out one
afternoon and gave the birds I shot to some natives to carry back, but
unfortunately they cooked and ate them all before I was aware of their
intentions.

" Mr. D. McLean, a visitor, shot a Sanderling at Point Cloates, 30th
December, 1895.

" 12th December, 1896. I shot an midoiibted Sanderling. It was
badly smashed and in poor plumage, so did not make a skin.

" 5th December, 1897. Shot fom' out of five Sanderlings at one shot ;
was camped out at the time and could not make good skins. (This note
was accompanied by a pair of skins, which unfortunately were so far
damaged by insects in transit as to be perfectly worthless. He also
shot two other Sanderlings about the 1st November, which were for-
warded to the Perth — Western Australia — Museum).

" 25t.h April, 1898. Shot two Sanderlings at Point Cloates, and at
same locality, 27th November, 1898. Asiatic Dottrels and SanderUngs
plentifid now."

" — June, 1899. Sanderlings, also Turnstones and Little Stints,
are here all through the winter, every year." Tliis last note of
Mr. Carter's is certainly very puzzling, seeing that these birds, at that
time, should be away in some northern clime breeding.

Returning again to the far away breeding hamits of this wandering
bu"d, we find, according to Seebohm's '' British Birds," that " the habits
of the Sanderling during the breeding season are little known. It
possibly pairs before it leaves its winter quarters, for it has been observed
in chase of its mate on the sands. It amves at its breeding place as
soon as the snow is sufficiently melted to allow it to find food ; and shortly
52

8i8 NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTRAUAN BIKDS.

after its amval its nesting duties are commenced. Probably the first
authentic eggs of the Sanderling were obtained by Macfarlane on the
ban-en ground close to the shore of the Aixtic Ocean, a little east of the
Andei-son River, of North-west America. He found the nest on the
29th of June, 1863. It contained four fresh eggs, and the female wa,s
captured. The nest was slight, made of a little dn' gi'ass and leaves.
In 1876 Capt. Feildeu (not Pielden — J.A.C.) added further to our
knowledge concerning this interesting little bird. He found it breeding
at the extreme northern limit of anima.l life, on the shores of the frozen
ocean, a little to the west of Cape Union, in Grinnell Land. He obsei-ved
several pairs of birds, and found one nest containing two eggs, on the
24th of June. It was placed on a gravel ridge, several hundred feet
above sea level, and consisted merely of a slight depression in the centre
of a recumbent plant of willow, lined with a^ few dead leaves and some of
last year's catkins. At tliis nest the male wa.« killed, so that it appears
both parents assist in incubating tlie eggs. On the 8th pi August of
the same year he observed several parties of yoving Sanderlings, just able
to fly, with down sticking to their feathei-s, being led about by their
parents and searching diligently for insects."

631. — LiMONiTES RUFicoLLis, Pallas. — (524)
Trim/a n/heaceiix, Temm.

LITTLE STINT.

Eigure. — Gould: Birdf of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 31.
Rcfercni-e. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. x-xiv., p. 545.

Gengrnphiral D/strihuflrm. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania.; also
New Guinea and the Malayan Archipelago generally, migrating througli
Burma, China, and Japan to Eastern Siberia.

Xexf a ltd Eggx. — Undescribcd.

Oh-iervatioiis. — This exceedingly interesting little bird is the smallest
of otu' Sandpipers. We learn from Mr. Seebohm that it was first
described by the Russian naturalist, Pallas, in 1776, and that it breeds
in Eastern Siberia, passing by way of Lake Btikal, China, and Japan,
to winter in the Malayan Archipelago and Australia. The Little Stint,
or Least Sandpiper, is common during the summer in ever)' State,
including Tasmania. The shores of bracldsh swamps, salt lakes,
and estuaries are its favoured haunts, where it feeds on aquatic
insects (land and marine) and small shell-fish. As we see it in Australia
it has a simple dress — greyish or draI>coloun5d — light on the undcnuath
parts, with a faint (race of nisty mottle about the chest. Tlie wing
coverts arc; tipped with white. The bill and eyes arc dark-brown, while
the slender IcEfs are more of an olive-brown. The total lengfli of this
sprightly little Wader is just a trifle under six inches. Gilbert, the able

NESTS AND EGGS Oh AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 819

coadjutor of Goiild, moiUions (hat the Little Stint assembles in large
flocks on Rottnest Island. i can bear testinion)- to tliis fact, for diu^ing
my visit to Western Australia the birds still wero plentiful on that
favourite and uudistiu-bed feeding ground. In going round tlic salt lake
on Rottnest (or Rat's Nest of the discoverer Vlaming) Island, I saw flocks
of liundreds of the Little Stints or Little Snipe, as the residents
call them. They appeared to be partial to the narrow, moist beaches,
and were rather loathe to move ; when flushed, however, they simul-
taneously rose, eveiy now and again shai-ply wheeling, displaying
alternately their dark backs and a flash of white under-sru-faces.

Further north I sought diligently for the eggs on Houtman's Abrollios, '
where Gilbert alleged he found two, but without success. I now believe
Gilbert may have mistaken the eggs of the Red-c<ipped Sandpiper for
those of the Little Stint — a mistake easily made, because I noticed
in the evening the two species retired from the beaches to roost together
in the centre of the islands. However, it would be remarkable if Little
Stints' eggs were taken in Australia, seeing the bird is an Arctic
breeding species, where it is known in its gayer breeding phunage as
the Red (nisty) throated Stint.

632. — Heteropygi.\ acumtn.\t.\, Horsfiold. — (522)
SHARP-TAILED STINT.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 30.
Heference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 566.

Geographical Distrihution . — Whole of Australia and Tasmania; also
New Zealand, New Guinea and the Malayan Archipelago, migi-ating by
China and Japan to breed in the regions of Eastern Siberia and Alaska.

Nest and Egg.t. — Undescribed.

Observations. — ^The Sharp-tailed Stiat, or as it is .sometimes caUed,
the Marsh Tringa, has been procured in all the States of Australia and
Tasmania. These birds are partial to marshy districts and the borders
of streams, and run through the grass and herbage much after the
manner of true Snipes. They also frequent the sandy beaches of the sea
coast either in pairs or small flocks. The food is chiefly aquatic insects
and their larvae. This pretty little species of Sandpiper is only between
seven inches and eight inches in total length, and much resembles
a small Snipe. Here may be given a rough description of the plumage.
The feathers of the upper surface are dark-brown in the centre, fading
into grey on the margin, and impart a very beautiful appearance to
the coat of the bird. The crown of the head and breast wear a, rufous
tinge, while the abdomen is whitish ; legs and bill are both about the
same length (1-i inches), matching each other in a shade of olive-green,
while the eyes are black.

820 NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTRALIAN BIRDS.

While Mr. Ed. Degen, my son and I were wading through a shallow
swamp on the Wen-ibee Plains, seeking for a Spvir-wingcd Plover's nest
(which, by the way, we foimd with three eggs just chipped), we flushed
two or three Sharp-tailed Stints, which were tame and alighted again a
short distance away amongst the water weeds. Their action on the
wing was jerky and butterfly-like. Date, 3rd October, 1896.

The breeding haunts of the Sharp-tailed Stint are still shrouded
in mystery, and its eggs are written down " undescribed, " but
Mr. Seebohm supposes it breeds in Dauria.

633. — Ancylochilus .subarquatus, Giildnest. — (523)
CURLEW STINT.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Au'^tralia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 32.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 586.

Geographical Dii^trihution. — Australia in general, and Tasmania;
also New Guinea, Africa, India, &c., migrating to the Arctic regions to
breed.

Nest and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Ohsfrvationn. — Although its precise breeding grounds arc yet undis-
covered, the Ciurlew Stint or Sandpiper is an Ai-ctic-breeding species.
In the seasonal changes of its plumage it resembles the Knot (the
following species), as the bird changes the red or nifous livery of summer
for the gi-eyish coat of winter. Like the rest of the Sandpipers it
resorts to the shingly beaches and the banks of estuaries and rivers in
nearly every part of Australia and Tasmania. The specimens I noted
on that famous feeding-gi-oimd — the Abrollios — were either single or in
twos or threes about the shores, but none appcai-ed in full plumage — that
is, in the rufous stage. The lenglh of the bird is between 7 inches and
8 inches, including a compai'atively long bill of lA inches. As Colonel
Legge states, this flne Sandpiper maintains its interest for the orni-
thologist owing to its nest and eggs still being unknown, a fact rendered
all the more curious by the very brief space of time it evidently spends
in the Arctic regions.

The egg figured in my manual, " Nests and Eggs," as pertaining to
the Curlew Stint, was obviously an error.

634. — TiuNGA CANUTite. Linnreus. — (525)

KNOT.

Figure.— Gau\A: Birds of Great Britain, fol., vol. iv , pi. 65.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 593.

Previous Description of Eggs.—Mexxium : .\uk, vol. ii., p. 313 (1881;).

Geograjjhica/ Dufrihution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria and South Australia; also New Zealand, Africa and South
America, migrating to the Arctic regions to breed.

NESTS AXD EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 821

Nest. — Undescribed.

Eggs. — Clutch, ; light pea-green, closely spotted with brown

in small specks about the size of a pin liead. Dimensions in inches :
11x10 (Merriam).

Observations. — The Knot is an exceedingly interesting migrant,
wandering from the Arctic regions to the far south, even to New Zealand.
It was first noticed in Australia, near Brisbane, on 2nd September, 1861.
Since then it has been observed m New South Wales, Victoi'ia and South
Australia. Oiu- National Museum possesses examples, and I recollect
once seeing a bird in a taxidermists shop in Melboiu'ne ; also' odd birds
exliibited for sale in the market, with Snipe, Shaip-tailed, Little and
ClU'lew Stints. For all that the Knot may be deemed a rare bird in
these parts. When in full breeding or siuiimer plumage in the noi-th,
the whole of the undenieath parts are chestnut, which is also the prevail-
ing colour of the upper parts. The traces of red are disappearing or
have disappeared by the time the bird reaches Australia in oui- spring
or early summer. The Knot is then in its off-season di'ess, a garb of
grey. The uninitiated seeing the bird in its northern summer plmnage
and in its Australian winter phase might .suppose he was looking at
two distinct species. Tlie specimens 1 saw in Melbourne appeared to
have lost little, if any, of its chestnut colouring.

Ml". A. Coles exhibited at a meeting of the Field Natiu-alists' Club
of Victoria, held 13th July, 1896, a fine group of Knots — a male in full
pkunag?, a female, and an immatiu'e female — which were shot at Western
Port the middle of May. I c<-in imderstand the male being in full lively
about that time, but what were the birds doing in Austral regions at
that particular season instead of being somewhere within the Arctic
Circle breeding?

Scarcely auytlring is known of the breeding places of the Knot.
Mr. H. C. Hart, the naturalist of the expedition of the " Alert " and
" Discovery," saw nvmierous fuU-grO'Wn birds with their young in the down
in the neighbourhood of Discovery Bay. The finding of an egg by
Lieutenant Greely, late commander of the United States Expedition
to Lady Franklin Sound, was announced in the " Auk," the American
ornithological joiu-nal, by Dr. Hart Merriam, who says : " Lieutenant
Greely writes me the specimens of tlie bird and egg were obtained in
the vicinity of Fort Conger, latitude 81 ij deg. north.'' Some authorities
ai-e incHned to doubt the parentage of the egg.

635. — Tring.v ckassirostkis, Temminck and Schlegel. — (526)
GREAT SANDPIPER.

figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. a-
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 600.

Geographical Di>;fribufioii. — ^Northern Territory, Queensland, New
South Wales, and West Australia ; also New Guinea, and the Malayan
Archipelago, migrating through China and Japan to Eastern Siberia.

822 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Nest and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Observations. — Still another northern visitor, which much resembles
the Curlew Stint or Sandpiper as well as the Knot — in fact, it; is some-
times called the Japanese Knot. The seasonal changes of all these birds
are the same, but the Great Sandpiper is slightly the lai-gest of the three
birds, being 10.\ inches in length. In Australia it has been recorded for
West Australia, Northern Territoiy, Queensland, and New South Wales.

In exhibiting a skin before the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria,
1898, collected on the Gippsland Lakes by Mr. J. B. Mason, I was some-
what too hasty in extending the locality to Victoria. Afterwards, in
examining other examples, I proved it to be the Common Knot. I
should also have obsei-ved that the Great Sandpiper or Japanese Knot,
in its winter plumage, as it reaches us, nearly resembles the ordinai'y
Knot; but the former has, besides a longer bill, pvne white upper tail
coverts, notwithstanding Gould's figure of the bird shows those parts
mottled.

636. — Gallinago australis, Latham. — (533)
SNIPE.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 40.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. x.xiv., p. 652.

Previous Description of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
vol. xiv., p 170 (uSgSj.

Gedgrapliical Distrihutiitn. — Whole of Au.stralia and Tasmaoaia;
also New Zealand (accidental), and migrating b)' Formosa, &c., to breed
in Japan. <

Nest. — On the ground, amongst the givass of marshy uplands.

Eggs. — Clutch, four; pyiiform, or pear-shaped; texture of shell
comparatively fine ; surface glossy ; colour, warm stone-grey, boldly
blotched and spotted, especially round the upper quarter, with rich umber
and dull or cloudy purplish-brown ; some of the heavier markings have
the appearance of having been wiped on with a brush. Somewhat large
compared with the size of the bird, and except for their hunger size come
nearest in likeness to those of the Turnstone ( Arenaria interpre.'i).
Dimensions of a clutch in inches: (1) 1'77 x 1-2, (2) 1-73 x 1-22,
(3) 1-71 X 1-22, (4) 1-7 X 1-21. (Plate 23.)

Observations. — The Australian Snipe was fii-st described by Dr.
Latham in 1801, and is .sometimes known as Latham's Snipe. All
sportsmen are familiar with the " Long-bills, " but little is known of
their natural economy, while their nests and eggs were onlv discovered,
at all events only dcscrilied, in 1898, or nearly a ccnturj' after the birds
themselves became known to ornithological science.

NESTS A.VD /-GGS 01- AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 82J

Seebohjn, in his splendid work, " The Geographical Disti'ibution of
Plovei-s, Sandpipers, and Snipes," states the Austi'alian Snipe " breeds
in both islands of Jap;ui, and passes the Philippine Islands and the coast
of China on migiation to winter (i.e., to escape the northern winter and
really to smniiier) in Anstralia and Tasmania." Colonel Lcgge observes
that although the Snijx; pas-ses over much latitude, its path is veiy naiTow,
as it does not touch the China coast on its flight from Japan to the north
of A\istraha.

In Messi-s. Blakiston and Piyer's " Birds of Japan ' (1882), it is
stated that this Snipe was obtained on Fuji, when breeding, and that it
is common in Yezo, where it was first discovered to be a Japanese bird
in 1861.

Mr. Blakiston, in his " Amended List of Birds of Japan," p. 37 (1884),
furnishes the following interesting account of the bird : " Regarding the
habits of this Snipe during the breeding season, I extract the following
from my notes m the ' Chrysanthemiun,' November, 1882, p. 524,
I'efemug to birds observed on the south-east coast of I'ezo in May : ' The
Common Snipe of Europe and the Great Australian Snipe were botli
tolerably niunerous. They were evidently prepai'iug to breed, so tliat
I had many opportunities of obsei-ving' the aeiial evolutions which they
go thi'ough at such season. Whether botli are alike in this I am
luicertain, but the AustraUan species acts veiy like the Snipe in North
America, but flying about pretty high and making sudden rapid descents
almost to the ground, which latter movement is accompanied by a loud
wiiisping noise. At evening, and during the day in did! weather, these
evolutions are commonly performed; and in dirty, rainy weather the
noise is frequently heard even in the middle of the night. There is
another singular habit which G. australis has, namely, that of perching
on the stumps of trees. I think this is done only at the season when
the pecidiar aerial evolutions are practised, but this I am not confident
about, nor am I sui'e it is a habit of tliis Snipe only. To be certain, I
shot two Great Austrahau Snipe the same day oft trees. ihe first was
on the top of a dead oak, the upper part of wliich had been broken square
off thirty-seven or thirty-eight feet from the ground. I am tolerably
near the exact height I know, because I placed a stick in a crevice in the
tree, and then going oh to some distance counted the number of fathoms
to the top. The other one I watched for some time going tlu-ough its
aerial evolutions, until after one of its rapid descents it alighted on the
head of a stump about ten feet high, when I shot it.' "

The Japanese, who call the bird Yama-sliinja, take little interest in
the natiu'ai history of then- country. That is one reason why the nests
and eggs remained so long undiscovered, and why we know so little of
the domestic matters of this feathered migrant, so full of interest to
Australians.

When Messrs. S. H. Rowe and J. Kelly, of the Customs Department
of Victoria, were deputed by the Government in 1894 to imdertake a
" Trade Mission " to the East, I very natui-ally thought of Snipe, and
Mr.Rowe kindly made a private memorandum in his pocket book. When
he reached Japan Mr. Rowe was introduced to Mr. Allan Owstoii, of
Yokohama, the only person there likely to prociu-e Snipes' eggs.

824 NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

I corresponded vdth Mr. Owston for three years, till at length he
wrote : " I am the pi-oud possessor of the eggs of Scolopax (Gulliiuiya)
australix. I have had extraordiuaiy trouble and expense to obtain
them. The birds breed on the gi'assy moorlands at the foot of Fujiyama
at an elevation of 2,000 to 3,000 feet above the sea. Fujiyama is
12,500 feet high. I watched them on the 28th April (1897), and on
other dates dvu-ing the breeding season. When alanncd they fly round
high overhead, circling generally against the siui, and every now and
again they cry ' chip, chip, cheo, che-cheo,' and then rush downward at
the intruder, beating the air in their descent and making a tenific
iiishing noise. When the weather is foggy and they come close down
the noise is so startling that it is some time before a nervous person can
get accustomed to it. Heard in the distance it may be easily mistaken
for the hard breathing of a railway engine climbing a. mountain gradient.
They make about two or tlu-ee downward dives dunng each circuit."

The handsome clutch of eggs I am indebted to Mr. Owston for was
accompanied by the following data: — "363. Scohipax. austral is. Nest
on ground, among grass. Harasatomura, Gotemba. 17th May, 1897.
Contained four eggs." I may mention that Mr. Owston endeavoured
to snare with bird-lime one of tlie jjarents of the first nest he found, but
only succeeded in pulling a few feathers out of the bird. The following
day he netted another bird and caught a young one by hand.

The Snipe has been obsei-ved in Japan from April to August. When
they take their great southward flight, as soon as Australia is reached
some probably land, others go south-west, but the bulk of migi-ation
continues down the eastern portion of the Continent to Tasmania, the
southern limit.*

My record (assisted by Mr. P. N. Jenkins, fish salesman, &c., Swanston
Street, who generally exhibits the first bird shot) for the last twelve
years of the annual aiTival of the advance guards of Snipes in the
vicinity of Melbourne is as follows : —

"1889, 5th or 6th September; 1890, 3rd September; 1891, end
iiugust; 1892, middle Augxi-st : 1893, 30th August; 1894, 1st Sep-
tember; 1895, 22nd Augiist ; 1896, 4th August; 1897, 27th Julv:t
1898, 26th August; 1899, 18th August; 1900, 29th August."

For an early arrival the 1897 date is a " record." I thought that bird
might have been maimed, or had remained dm'ing winter in Australia,
but I ascertained that several birds about that time or soon after were
.seen in the same locality, which was Heatherton, between Cheltenham
and Dandenong.

By September and October the majority of the Snipes have arrived,
and may be found in favoured swampy sitviations, feeding on worms and
aquatic insects. When flu.shed the Snipe utters a prolonged " scrape-
scrape," and, not being of extraordinarily rapid flight, offers a good
mark to a sportsman. A brace of birds in good condition should tui'ii
the scale at 11 ozs.

• There is a recent occurrence of a binl in New Zealand, ride Trans N.Z. Inst.,
xxxi., p. 105.

t About this extraordinarily early dale three birds were shot at Mellon,
Tasmania.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

525

Towards tlic end of the Australian autiunn the Snipes — those, at
least, that have happily missed being shot or othei-wise killed — tiu'u their
long bills northward again, and the exodus from Australia is probably
complete hy March or April (Mr. Kcartland's latest record was a brace
and a half of birds, shot at Clayton, Victoria, on 12th March), when the
land of the eucalypts is deserted in favour of the upland marshes of the
snow-clad peak of Fujiyama, and other similar places in Japan.

Snipe shooters, as well as natui-alists, will read with pleasiu-e the
interesting experiences and valuable infonnation as to the habits of this
bird was furnished by Mr. H. W. Wheelwright in his little book. " Bush
Wanderings." Mr. Wheelwright, who lived a Bohemian Ufe in the
gold era, fonncd a camp near Mordialloc, Victoria, the exact spot being
opposite the present railway station, between the road and the beach, and
shot for the market. In 1853 he mentions having sold his first Snipe
for five shillings. The most he ever " bagged " himself in one day was
thirteen and a half brace. As a specimen of a day's sport in those times,
the following is an extract from his game book, imder date 22nd
December, 1854, when he and his mate shot, on the island in the swamps
(now reclaimed), near Mordialloc : — " Tliirty-three Quails, seven Groimd
Thrushes, one Landrail, six Bronze-wing Pigeons, twenty-twO' Snipe, tlu'ee
Nankeen Herons, five Black Ducks, three Shoveller Ducks, three Coots,
two Bald Coots, two Black Cockatoos, one Crimson (Pennant)
Parrakeet, and seven Warbling Grass Parrakeets. " Total, five short of
a hundi-ed — not a bad day's sport, and a varied bag for two guns.

But to proceed with Mr. 'Wheelwiight's habits of the Snipe, he says ;
" They appear in the districts round the coast in September, remain
thiougliQut tlie summer, and leave in February or the beginning of March.
They come down by stages, for we generally heard of the first Snipe being
killed up country a fortnight at least before they reached us. The first
place that they visited in our district was the Clyde, a low flat of wet
pasture land about fifteen miles below Dandenong, towards Western
Port Bay. This is the best and earliest Snipe gi-ouud that I know ; but
the water very soon goes off, and a man, to have any good shooting, should
be there when they fia-st come. Then they take another flight, and,
like the Snipe at home, following the flood, come into the Dandenong
country, and thence dispersei themselves over the swamps and low grouud.s,
frequenting, of course, pecuhar localities whei'e there is good feeding
ground, till they reach the coast, where all that are spared remain until
they leave ; and I could always make sure of one or two in the
honeysuckle or tea/-tree scrub along the beach when I could find them
nowhere else. The habits of the Australian Snipe are veiy puzzling,
and a man who is not used to Snipe-shooting here may beat acre after
acre of what we should consider, in the fen, capital Snipe gi-ound, withovit
springing a bird, and perhaps pa.ssing over the very places where the
Snipe lie. Fancy an old fen-man trying for Snipe among ferns and
heather on a dry sandy rise, or in thick honeysuckle sciiib, yet these are
the very places to look for the Australian Snipe ; in the summer and
in the heat of the day you will find them here in large wisps, and
nowhere else. In the early part of the season a man may, however,
beat for them in much the same places as he would at home; and ;is

826 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

the season advances they He much under the shelter of any large timber
near the swamp, and in patches of teartrec which skiii; the creeks and
wet ground. They never lie far in, and an old dog who knows liis
business will potter steadily along a yard or so in the tea^tree and tixrable
out the Snipe as fast as ever you can load and fire. In the very heat of
summer they get much into the honeysuckle scrub, but always somewhere
near their feeding grounds ; and here it is snap-shooting with a vengeance,
for when they rise they are only seen for an instant. The Australian
Snipe in the open is not nearly so difficult to kill as the Snipe at home.
They are a larger object, fly much steadier, and generally go away
straight ; yet, owing to the places they frequent, are often missed. They
are veiy fond of lying in the shade by day. If by chance any large
gum-trees stand in an open wet plain, they will generally get imder them ;
and I have often planted myself mider a favourite tree and stood still
while others were beating the grovmd roimd me, and killed as many as
all the other guns. They usually rise quietly ; but I have heard them
' scape ' hke the Enghsh bird, especially when coming down to the
feeding grounds at night. I fancy one wisp follows another as they
aie travelling down, for in some days you will find Snipe in some places
where a week before there was not one. Of course, this is much owing
to the state of the feeding grounds and the season. Before the water
dries up they are dispereed over the whole face of the country ; but as
it goes down and many of the feeding gi-ounds become parched, they
pack more. There are then some places where you are sure to find
birds; and a man must know the country well to make sure of a bag
late in the season, for I never knew a bird that sticks to favourite
locahties more than the Australian Snipe. They shift their quai-ters
in the early part of the season very suddenly, and if a man hears of a
wisp of Snipe in any particular place, he must be off at once, or upon
reaching the gi-ound he will probably have the mortification of seeing
the feeding-marks of himdreds of Snipe, and find perhaps only a few-
outlying birds. The Australian Snipe is a ten-ible bird to i-un, and
you will rarely inse one just at the spot where j'ou saw it pitch. Tliey
often perch in the tea-tree scrub."

637. — RosTKATui..\ (Rhynchvea) AisTKALis, Gould. (534)

PAINTED SNIPE.

figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 41.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxiv., p. 690.

Previous Descriftiom of Ei;i;s. — Ramsay : I'roc. I, inn. Soc, N.,S.
Wales, 2nd ser., vol. i. (i.S,S6) ; North : .Vustn. Mus. Cat., with
fig., p. 312 (1889); Campbell: I'roc. Austn. Assoc, vol. v.,
p. 442 (189J).

Geographical Distr Unit inn. — Australia in general.

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 827

Nest. — -A slight depression in tin- ground, liucd with lierbagu, near
the margin of water.

H;/;/^. — Clutch, four ; broad oval in sliapa, and of striking
appeai'ance ; texture of shell fine ; sui-fiicc slightly glossy ; colour,
ligut yellowish-bviil or stone, heavily mai-ked all over with large patches
of dark olive or sepia, almost black in instances. These patches, some
of which would cover the area of a three-penny piece, assume fanciful
figures, and are conjoined with lesser and streaky mai-kings. Where
the groiuid-coloiu- is visible greyish markings appear under the suii'ace
of the sheU. Dimensions in inches of a. clutch: (1) 1-41! x r03,
(•2) 1-37 X 1-0, (3) 1-32 X -98, (4) 1-3 x 10. (Plate 23.)

ObservaiiuHs. — Although nowhere abundant, and mostly seen in
solitary pairs, the Painted Snipe is a home bird, that is confined to
Austraha, but is not found in Tasmania. It is handsome, and when
seen on the wing may be compared to a huge butterfly or a beautiful
moth, 01 many shades of gie}' and brown above and liglit-colom'ed under-
neath. There is a white mai'k round the eye, extending towards the
back of the head. Bill not lengthened, as that of the true Snipe, but
its legs are a trifle longer — total length, 9i inches. Unlike the true
Snipe, the Painted bird resorts more to the drier ground contiguous to
swamps and lagoons, where it procures its natmal food.

In the season of 1839, on the Upper Himter, New South Wales,
Gould, in dissecting a female, found an egg in the ovarium, nearly the
full size and ready to receive its calcareous covering, which left no doubt
in the great naturalist's mind that the birds were breeding in that district.
My namesake (Jlr. Charles E. Campbell) noticed a pair of Painted Snipe,
with a young family, among the herbage bordering the Bvillock Ci'eek,
Pyramid Hill, Victoria, during October or November, 1884. Mr. North,
in describing a handsome set of eggs taken by Mr. K. H. Bennett, near
the mai-gin of a swamp at Ivanhoe, New South Wales, in October, states
the nest was a depression in the gi'oimd, neatly lined with broad eucalypt
leaves. Mr. George Masters, cmator of the MacLeayan Museum,
Sydney, showed me a very fine clutch in the collection of that institution,
which Mr. North has since given dimensions, &c., of. Mr. Masters was
the first to explode the erroneous idea, that they were the eggs of the
true Snipe (GaUinagu), as we had supposed similar eggs to be.

Breeding months, September to December.

We know veiy little about the movements of these rare birds. It
is probable that, after rearing their young in the south, they retire to
more interior quarters during winter.

828 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ORDER-GAVI/E: SEA BIRDS.

FAMILY— LARID^ : GULLS AND TERNS.
Sub-family — Sternin^e : Terns.

638. — Hydrochelidon leucoptera, Mei.siier and Sdiiuz.
WHITE-WINGED TERN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Great Britain, vol. v., pi. 76.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 6.

Previous Description of Eggs. — Legge : B rds of Ceylon, p. 1002 (1880).

Geographical Distribution. — North-west Australia, Noi-them Terri-
tory and North Queensland ; also New Zealand (accidental) and
Alriea, migrating north to temperate Asia, South and Central Ern'ope.
Said to have occuned once at Wisconsin, America.

Nest. — Constructed of reeds and rushes, on floating vegetations in
marshes (Legge).

Eijgx. — Clvitch, three nsuallj', four occasionally ; somewhat pointed
in] shape ; coloiu' varies considerably, being buff, brownish-buff, pale bidl'y-
stone, or pale stone, boldly blotched and clouded, some at the large end,
others on the middle, with deep sepia or blackish-brown ; there are also
numerous smaller markings of the same, under which are the usual light
blots of gi'ey of different shades. Dimensions in inches of selected
examples ; (1) 1-37 x 1-01, (2) 1-35 x -99, (3) 1-34 x 1-0 (Legge).

Ohscrvations. — It appears the Wliite-winged Tern occasionally touches
the northern shores of Australia, and tlicre is one instance of its occur-
rence in New Zealand, where, on December 12th, 1868, Mr. D. Munro
shot a pair on the Waihopai River bed, in the district of Nelson. The
stragglers were associated with a colony of White-fronted Terns
( S. frontalis).

Concerning its general habits, Colonel Legge writes : " Like the last
.species (the Marsh Tern), this Marsh Tern is generally met with about
inland waters, about which it flies with i-apid, gi-aeeful and buoyant
Might, and feeds on insects, water-beetles, small fish, larv», and woniis.
It consorts in flocks, .sometimes of considerable numbei-, and associates
with the Marsh Tcm, which it excels, however, in the swiftness of its
flight,"

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 829

639. — HYDROfHEunoN HYBRiDA. Pallas. (610)

MAESH TERN.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 31.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. .\xv., p. 10.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — I.egge : Birds of Ceylon, p. 999
(1880) ; Campbell : Southern Science Record (18S3), also Nests
and Eggs .Austn. Birds, pi. 2, fig. 610 (18S3); North: Austn.
Mus. Cat., p. 353 (1889), also app. ii. (1890); Hume — Oates :
Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds, vol. iii.. p. 305 (1890).

Geographical Distribution. — Australia in general ; also various other
localities in the Old World.

Ne.sf. — Somewhat symmetrically built of stalks of aquatic herbage,
with a submerged foundation, and fringed about with gi-owing grass
(" couch ") in a lagoon or swamp. Dimensions over all, including
foundation under water, 18 inches in depth; diameter of base at water-
line, 16 to 18 inches; diameter of top, which is slightly concave, 8 inches.

E(/c/s. — Clutch, two to three ; form varies from broad to pointed
oval ; texture of shell flue and tliin ; surface slightly glossy ; coloiu',
varies from light cold-green to ohve, but is usually a warm greyish-
green, spotted and blotched with dark-olive or umber and duU-gi'ey.
Some of the markings are fancifully shaped, bold and lai-ge, and, in
instances, inclined to cluster round the upper quarter. Dimensions in
inches of a series of full clutches : typical (1) 1-57 x 1-09, (2) 1-54 x 1-1.
(3) l-.51xM2; small (1) 1-5 x 1-07, (2) 1-45 x 1-05, (3) 1-39 x 1-06;
round (1) 1-43 x Ml, (2) 1-41 x 1-08. (3) 1-41 x 1-06. (Plate 23.)

Observations. — This vridely distributed species is found in Europe,
Asia, and Africa, as well as Australia, where it frequents inland watei-s.
It is a very beautiful and interesting bird. Its silvery-grey forms
may often be seen flying along the course of rivers or hawking over the
face of swamps in the interior. I have seen the birds a good deal in the
neighbourhood of the Murray River. Unhappily for me, I was either
too eai'ly for eggs or missed their favoiu:ite breeding gi'ounds, for after
I returned home my friend, Mr. G. H. Morton, kindly sent me the
following interesting descriptive sketch, and several beautiful clutches
of the Tern's eggs for examination : — " I have found the nesting place
of the Marsh Terns. It is the old swamp that I directed you to up the
river. I regretted veiy much that you were not with me when I came
upon it, as it was as grand a sight as the Ibis rookery we discovered.
Just imagine a swamp of about 500 acres in extent, covered with a
beautiful gi-een-sward of couch-grass, spangled with the bright star-like
3'ellow flowers of the Limnaiifhemum. and hovering over this or sitting
on their nests himdreds and hundreds of Terns, while hundreds of Little
Grebes were bobbing up and down among them ! At almost every
boat's length a Tern's nest was to be seen, with invariably three eggs

830 A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

lying iii it, so exposed that you would tliink a slight wind would blow
them ofi the nest. Among these, in the proportion of say eight to ten
of the Terns, was to be seen the darker nast of the Grebe, with eggs
carefully hidden from view. The Terns' nests were very symmetrically
built of gi'een gi'ass. They were about 8 inches in diameter on the top,
with submerged foundations of about 18 inches, prettily fringed romid
with the growing couch grass. Tlie clutches of eggs varied from a dark
umber ground with heavy blotches to finely speckled on a light gi'eenish
gi'ound."

Again Mr. Morton writes : " I was out on the bax;k swamps, 26th
November, 1893, aiid took a number of clutches of Marsh Terns' eggs —
three to each nest. Nest built of long stalks of green water plants, cup-
shaped, and just sufficiently large to hold the eggs, placed on a radiated
base about 16 to 18 inches across. Nests within a few yards of each
other, floating among flowering Limnonfhemiim. Nearly all the eggs
were fresh."

Referring to the Marsh, or Whiskered Tern as it is sometimes called,
breeding in oiu- great Indian Empire, Mr. Allan O. Hume gives a pretty
picture when he writes : " In the centre of the jheer (lagoon), where the
water was deepest, and no rice or rush grew, but where the lake was
paved with lotus or lily leaves, a small colony of those birds had estab-
lished itself. On the broad leaves of the lotus they had loose, slight
nests of rice and rash stems, and in these we found their eggs. Only
two nests contained three eggs each, the others two, and one. All the
eggs were perfectly fresli. The birds had obviously just begun to lay.
There were not less than twelve nor more than twenty couples. We
shot one, a female, which we preserved. Whilst the nests were being
robbed the birds whirled round and roimd the men's heads continually,
emitting their hoarse sa-eaming cry."

It is a curious fact that in North Africa Canon Ti-istram found a
colony of Marsh Terns breeding in the deserted nests of Grebes.

640. — Gelocheltdon anglica, Montagu. — (608)
(r. iniirrotfirxd, Gnuld.

GULL-BILLED TERN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., supp., pi. 81.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 25.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Legge : Birds of Ceylon, p. 1014
(1880) ; Campbell : Victorian Naturalist (18SS) ; North : Austn.
Mus. Cat., p. 355, pi. 17, fig. 2 (1S89) ; Hume — Oates : Nests
and Eggs of Indian Birds, vol. iii., p. 314 (i8go).

Geii(jrnphir,al Distrihutinn. — Australia in general; al>o Malayan
Archipelago, Asia, Europe, North Africa, ami America.

XcKt. — A few pieces of dry herbage or stems of " cane " grass, placed
on a small patch of ground, surrounded by water. Ten or twelve nests
may bo sometimes found on a patch of about 6 or 8 feet in diameter.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 83 1

Eggx. — Clutch, ihree to foui- ; oval or broad oval iu form ; texture
of shell somewhat coarse ; surface slightly glossy ; colour, usually
stony-gi'oy, but sometimes yellowish-stone, strongly blotched with rich
or dark lunber aud dull gi'cy. In some specimens a few of the heavier
blotches are cougi-egalcd about the upper quarter, otherwise the mark-
ings are fairly distributed. Some of the darker-coloured eggs resemble
in shape and coloui- the better known ones of the Silver Gull (Larus
nova hollandice). Dimensions in inches of odd examples : (1) 2-1 x 1-45,
(2) 2-05 X 1-52. Average of six — 2-05 x 1-47.

Obstrvatioiis. — The Long-legged or Gull-billed Tern is another species
which usually frtquents the rivers and fresh water lakes of the interior.
It is found in localities suitable to its habits throughout the Continents
of the world. However, it only appears occasionally in certain parts of
Australia duinng gi-eat floods. Goidd was of the opinion that the
Australian bird (he examined two examples), although closely allied.
was different from the northern species, inasmuch as lie thought the
fomier possessed a lighter and more silvei-y-coloured back and wings,
also a stout-er bill and longer and larger legs.

I was indebted to Mr. F. R. Godfrey for the eggs of this inland Tern,
which I exhibited at a meeting of the Field Natui-aUsts' Club, held
January. 1888. They were taken on his station, " Pevensey," about
thirteen miles from Hay, New South Wales. I formerly had examples
in my collection from " Ulonga," near the same locality, taken dmnng
the gi-eat Riverina flood of 1879.

Mr. Godfrey furnishes the following interesting note : " In November
there were large numbers of these birds (Long-legged Terns) seen every
day, skimming in hawk-like fashion over the salt-bush plains, generally
about twelve or more in company, about ten or twelve feet from the
groimd. watching most intently, with head tiu-ncd down, for insects or
small reptiles. On discovering one they darted down and carried it
up into the air, then dropped it and caught it while falling. The prey
they seemed to be in pui'suit of — which was found in the stomach of those
shot — consisted of small lizards and centipedes ; one specimen having
two lizards, each about three inches long, and three very large centipedes
of about the same length, in its stomach. These birds make their
nests — which consist of a few bits of dried gra.ss or stems of cane-grass —
on a small piece of ground, sunoimcted by water, and generally close to
each other ; as many as ten or twelve nests being foimd on a small patch
of about six feet in diameter. The eggs are generally tlu-ee or fovir in
number."

Eggs of the Long-legged Tern were collected in the Maiyborough
district of Victoria the same season (1887) that Mr. Godfrey took his
in Riverina.

Jlr. North quotes the following from the MS. of the late Mr. K. H.
Bennett: — "On two occasions (1870 and 1872) I have known the
S. anglicn to breed in the Ivanhoe district. In both instances the sites
chosen were similar, viz., a sandy bank, rising two or three feet above the
surroimding plain, and thickly covered with dwarf salt-btish. These
breeding places were about forty miles apart, in one case close to a wide

832 A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

sheet of water, and in the other two miles away from the nearest water.
At both places himdreds of birds were breeding, and the eggs, two in
number for a sitting, were deposited on the bare gi'ound, and so closely
together that care was required when wallfiug so as not to step upon
tliem. "

Concerning tlie Giill-billcd Tein breeding in extra-Australian localities,
it is interesting to learn that from the Persian Gidf Colonel Butler
wi'ote as follows to Mr. Allan Hume : — There were two species of Terns
breeding in separate colonies on different parts of the island (Warba),
viz., Sterna caspia and the present species. In each case the nests,
which were veiy abimdant, were built about a foot apart and consisted
of a small movmd of sand, scraped together by the birds, from 3 to 5
inches high, with small twigs and sticks laid on tlie top for the eggs to
rest upon. Most of the nests contained tliree eggs, all more or less
incubated. Skins of both species (S. caspia and <S'. anglira) were
forwarded to me with the eggs for identification ; and as there were no
other birds on the island at the time, except a few Common Herons
(A. cinerta ), that had also just commenced breeding, I think there can
be no doubt of the identity."

641. — H\T)ROPEOGNE c.\spiA, Pallas — (600)
CASPIAN TERN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 22.

Referenfe. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 32.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 393 (1865); Potts: Trans. New
Zealand Inst., vol. ii., p. 76 (1870) ; Legge : Birds of Ceylon,
p. loio (1880); BuUer ; Birds of New Zealand, vol. ii., p. 74
(1888); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 353, pi. 20, fig. 3 (iSSg).

Gengraphiral Dixfrihiition. — Seas of Austi'alia and Tasmania ; also
New Zealand, and various other localities in both the Old and New
Worlds.

Nestt. — Merely a .slight hollow (about 7A inches acro.ss by H inches
deep), in coarse, sandv earth, amongst pig-face weed, &c. ; usually situated
on the rocky summit of an islet, sometimes on a sand-spit at the mouth
of a river.

Eijr/x. — Clutch, two to three ; inclined to oval in shape ; texture
of shell coarse ; surface slightly glossy ; colour, stone-grey or hght
olivc-browu, moderately hlotclicd ,ind spotted with roundish markings
of umber and dull grevish-black. Dimensions in inches of a proper
clutch : (1) 2-48 X 1-68, "(2) 2'41 x 1-62, (3) 2-36 x 1-7. (Plate 23.)

Obnervotinns. — This truly powerful Tern is a splendid bird, and is
easily recognized by its large size and beautiful silvery plumage, with
crown of head black in breeding season, relieved by a hea\'}' scarlet bill.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 835

The Caspiau Tern is almost cosmopolitan as far as oceaus and seas are
concerned, being more numerous, of com-sc, in certain localities. Nowhere
in Australia does it live in colonieSj but rather in pairs, frequenting
particular islets of rocks, bold headlands and flats at the estuaries of
rivers. In some parts of the world, notably in India nnd the Persian
Gulf, the Caspian Tern lays in colonies, small or gi'cat.

As Gould ha.s stated, nothing could be easier than to discover its eggs,
because of the clamorous, cackling, screecliing notes wliich the bird con-
stantly utters while flying over the place where they are deposited.

I well recollect my first introduction to a pair of these fine Terns.
It occurred at the mouth of the Sea Elephant River, King Island, 8th
November, 1887. I was in the company of Mr. D. Le Souef, when a
bird, with buoyant flight on extensively developed wings and with bill
extended, screeched at us overhead wth hoai-se voice most frantically.
It was soon joined by its mate. We searched in vain for its eggs, but
it was not imtil the shingly patch on the opposite side of the river was
systematically searched in sections that a set of three fine eggs, which
in a remarkable degree resembled the surroundings, was discovered iii
a depression without a semblance of a nest.

Again, dui-ing another visit (November, 1893) of the Field Naturalists'
Club to the Fumeaux Group, we found isolated pairs of Caspian Terns
nesting on the small islands, usually near the rockv summit, where the
bird had a good look-out, the nest being a .slight hollow in the coarse,
sandy earth, amongst the pig-face weed, dead or living.

During my, Abrolhos trip. Western Australia (1889), I observed small
companies about the reefs, or singlv, diving for fish in the harbours.
Fledgelings were noted on the 15th December, also a fresh egg was taken
on the same date. The young in down are white underneath, mottled
with black and brown above.

Further north on the mainland, at Point Cloates, Mr. T. Carter has
taken Caspian Tern eggs in September.

In New Zealand, the late Mr. T. H. Potts remarked that " this fine
Tern is content with merely a hollow scraped in the sand, just large enough
to contain its eggs, the breeding sea.son extending from .November to
January.'' Sir Walter Buller confinns that breeding term, and add=;
that the young birds, however, follow their parents up till the end of
March, settling down with them on the sands, quivering their wings
as if impatient for attention, and making an incessant squealing or
whining cry.

General breeding season, August or September to January.

53

834 A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

642. — Sterna doug.vlli, Montagu. — (605)
S. (jracilix, Gould.

ROSEATE TERN.

Figure. — Gould ; Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 27.

Reference.- — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 70.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Legge : Birds of Ceylon, p. 1035
(icSSo) ; Campbell: Southern Science Record (1883), and Nests
and Eggs Austn. Birds, pi. 3, fig. 605, also Proc. Roy. .Soc,
Victoria, vol. iii., p. 5, pi. i, figs. 2 and 8 (1890); Hume —
Gates: Nests and Eggs Indian Birds, vol. iii., p. 301 (1890).

Geoyraphical Distribution. — Seas of West and Nortlt-west Australia,
Northern Territory and Queensland ; also New Caledonia, Malayan
Ai-chipclago, and many other localities of both the Old and New Worlds.

NeM. — A slight depression (about 5 inches across by 1 inch deep) in
the sand or ridge of dead coral, sometimes partially lined with fine
pieces of coralj shells, &c. Nests in colonies.

Eggs. — Clutch, two ; roundi.sh or round oval in shape ; texture of
shell comparatively fine ; surface, slight trace of gloss ; colom-, varies
from greyish-stone to warm-stone, boldly blotched and spotted with
dark umber or sepia and dull grey. Dimensions in inches of proper
clutches: A (1) 1-56 X Ml, (2) 1-55 x Ml ; B (1) 1-5 x M6,
(2) 1-5 xM5. (Plate 23.)

Ohsi'rvnfinDs. — The lovely roseate-tinted Tern was well named the
Graceful by Goidd. It is well nigh cosmopolitan, flying the tem-
perate and tropical seas in both hemispheres. Tliis species was first
discovered by Dr. Macdougall, of Glasgow, about eighty years ago, on
two small rocky islands known as the Cmnbraes, in the Firth of Clyde.
Montagu named the bird after its discoverer.

Coming to Australian regions, Gilbert obsei-ved this elegant Tern
very numerous on Houtman's Abrolhos, ofP the Western coast of
Australia, where thev were continually moving alx)ut from one part- of
those islands to another, and setthng in large flocks during the heat of
the day on the coral ridges. Gilbert was infonned (so Gould states)
that the Ti rns bred in the locality, bvit judged that he was unfortunately
too late to procure eggs, it being then November. As a matter of fact
he was too early, as the sequel will prove.

At the time of my visit to the Abrolhos (18S9), the eggs of this Tern
had not been described from anv Australian quarter, therefore, it may be
conjtctured that, with Gilbi-rt's inforni:\tion in my mind, T kept a good
look out for Roseate Tenis, and thought I was to be disapiioiiited. for I
had been on the islands for about three weeks without seeing an\' signs
of the birds. However, on my very last day, when returning to the
mainland in the cutter "Una," with Messrs. F. C. 'Broadhurst and
Groom, I was put ashore and came on to a coral ridge in Pelsart Island,

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 835

from which rose a cloud of himch'ods of beautiful birds, which hovered
overlio.id with querulous cries. My dcliglit can be better imagined than
described when 1 saw they were Roseate TemSj and that the ridge was
dotted with their eggs in doublets.

The following is the extract from my note book : " Graceful (Roseate)
Terns in companies of scores found nesting on jiaralkl ridges of dead
coral forming the naiTowest part of Pelsart Island, Houtnian's Abrollios,
23rd December, 188'J. Birds uttering usual shrieking cries. Eggs
two, but sometimes one, the nest being a hollow made in the rough
coral, filled with finer coral, shells, &c. Coral not the usual ci-eam-
coloiu' or white, but bluish-grey, as if from long exposiu'e to the elements,
and sustaining patches of lichen (Lecidea). On an adjacent ridge were
a few Temlets ( Sterva nereis) breeding; eggs two, sometimes one.
Young in down of the Roseate white luidenieath, rest of sm-face shghtly
mottled; feet and bill pink. Eyes dark in both species."

Pelsai-t Island was named after the captain of the " Batavia," which
came to grief on or near the island in 1629, and became one of the most
remai'kable and romantic wrecks on record. llie exact numbers are
not known ; but about forty pei-sons perished by di'owning, one hundred
and twenty-five were murdered, about twenty killed in the fight, and
sixty executed.

Since my visit, Mr. Beddoe^ tells me he has observed the Graceful
Terns nesting in April and Jime as well as December.

643. — Sterna media, Horsfield. — (603)
LESSER CRESTED TERN.

Figurr. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 25.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 86.

Prerious Descriftians of Eggs. — Hume : Nests and Eggs Indian Birds
(1875), also (Gates ed.) vol. iii., p. 299 (1890) ; Legge : Birds
of Ceylon, p. 1032 (iSSo) ; Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883), also Nests and Eggs Austn. Birds, pi. 3, fig. 603 (1S83) ;
North : Rec. Austn. Mus., vol. ii., p. 20 (1892).

Geographical Distrihution. — Seas of North-west Australia, Northern
Ten-itorv, Queensland, and New South Wales; also Malayan Aixhi-
pelago. Lower Bay of Bengal, Arabian Sea, Persian Gulf, islands in the
Indian Ocean, East Africa to Madagascar-, Red Sea, and the
MediteiTanean.

Jest. Merely a depression on a sand bank or ridge of silted-up dead

coral. In colonies, almost as close to each other as the birds can con-
veniently sit.

Eggs. Clutch, one ; oval or round oval in form ; texture of shell

coarse ; surface without gloss ; coloiu', whitish or pinkish-white, moder-
ately blotched and spotted with sepia or reddish-bro^vn and purplish

836

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AVSTFALIAN BIRDS.

grey, some of the brownish markings being softened at the edges into
a paler tint, as if smudged wlicn moist. When lield vip to the hght the
inside lining of the shell appears yellowish-green. Dimensions in inches
of selected specimens: (1) 2 15x1-55, (2, with spotted markings)
2-15 X 1-44, (3) 2-06 x 1-45. (4, lai-ge blotches on apex) 2-0 x 1-46.
(Plate 24.)

Ohservatiom. — This interesting Crested Teni is a medium-sized species,
and enjoys a range extending throughout the inter-tropical seas of the
Eastern Hemisphere.

It was first reported from Australia, by Gilbert, who procured two
examples at Port Essington, where he stated (according to Gould) that
the bird was numerous on all the sandy points of the harbom- as well as
all around the coast and on the neighbouring islands. Gilbert was
infoi-med that the Lesser Crested Tern bred on the sandy islands during
the months of April and May.

It has been shot as far soiith on the west coast of Australia as North-
west Cape.

Mr. H. Barnard found these Terns nesting as closely as the birds
could sit, on a sandy rock about twenty yards across, on the Great
Barrier Reef, about forty miles off the North Queensland coast.

The ezs.3 in my collection, taken by him, bear the date 23rd

^SS"

November, 1891. The following are Mr. Barnard's field obsei-A-ations,
which appeared in the " Victorian Naturalist," May, 1892 : — " I stopped
at the reef till the afternoon, when, as one of the boats was returning,
I went with it, and in about half an hour we again sighted the sand bank.
As we neared it I could see the birds flying about in thousands. We
ran the boat right on to the sand and jumped out into the water, wliich
was about two feet deep. The birds rose and ciixled overhead as we
landed. I had three shots, bringing down a bird each time, when the
rest took their departure and I was not able to obtain a fourth. The
eggs were lying on the sand in hundreds — I may say thousands, for in
one place I noticed a heap about eight inclies deep, and in another they
wore laid as closely together as the birds could sit, for more than six
feet square. The bank was not more than twenty yards across and about
three feet above high-water mark. The Terns were the same species
we saw breeding on one of the North Barnard Islands. I only stayed
on the bank about half an hour, as the men were anxious to get .away.
We reached the island about one o'clock the sameynight, and I employed
the next morning in skinning the birds and blowing the eggs. Owing
to the want of a boat I was as much handicapped on this island as we
were on the North Barnard, so I employed the time in searching for
insects, of which there were very few."

When Mr. James Walker, R. N., visited Adele Island, North-west
Australia, 2nd May, 189], he obson'cd a spot comparatively open and
bare of vegetation that was a breeding place of the Stenia metlin. He
was much too late for the, eggs of this bird, as the young ones, in a
prettily spotted stage of plumage, wore as large as their parents, though
as yet vinable to fly, and cleared out of his way likJ so many ducklings.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. g^y

644. — Sterna uehgu, LiLhtL-nsteiu. — (601 ami 60"2)
Tlialaxaeti-1 criitutus, Blytli.
2'. pu/ioccrciis, Gould.

CRESTED TERN.

Hgure. — Gould : Birds nf Australia, fol., vol.\ii., pis 2j and 24-

Refercncc. — Cal. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. .\xv., p. 89.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 395 (1865); Hume : Nests and Eggs
of Indian Birds (1875), also (Gates' ed.) vol. iii., p. 297 (1890) ;
Legge : Birds of Ceylon, p. 1029 (iSSoJ, also Proc. Roy Soc ,
Tasmania, p, 130 (18S8) : North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 354,
pi. 19, fig. 2 (1889).

Geographical Distribution. — Seas of Australia and Tasmania; also
Polynesia and the islands of the Pacific up to Havyaii Ai'chipelago,
Jlalayan Archipelago, China Seas up to Japan, Indian Ocean, Arabian
and Red Seas, and South Afiicaj both sides.

Ne.it. — A slight depression in the sand or shingle, overgrown with
pig-face weed or other short herbage, the only lining being occasionally
pieces of sea-weed. Nests in colonies, usually on isolated rocks or islets.

Egga. — Clutch, one (northem vaa-iety), two (southern variety) ; oval
in form, or more or less pointed at one end ; textiue of shell coarse ;
surface, faint trace of gloss ; colovu', varies much, but usually stony-grey,
fancifully streaked with hieroglyphic-like markings of dark sepia or black,
others have the markings in the fonn of smudges or blotches ; some
examples from the Tropics axe of exceptional beauty, having a pinkish-
white or roseate-coloured giotind, blotched or streaked, as the case may
be, with dark or rich reddish-brown and pui-plish-brown. Dimensions
in inches of examples from the west coast : (1) 2-55 x r64, (2) 2'42 x 1-66 ;
from the north: (1) 2-44 x 1-6, (2) 2-36 x 1-62; from the south:
(1) 2-32 X 1-58, (2) 2-3 x 1-59. (Plate 24.)

Ohaervations. — This large and handsome Tern, distinguished by its
yellowish-bill, besides frequenting the Australian seas, is found in
numerous other parts of the Eastern Hemisphere.

There has been much disputing whether there are allied species of
this bird. Gould recognized two, pointing out the Ton-es Strait Tern,
which he figured &s,.pelccaii<iidex, as diff'ering from its near ally the Bass
Strait Tern ( poliocerca) in its much lai'ger bill and in being a much
stouter bird. However, Mr. Saunders, an eminent .authoiity on sea-
birds, has bunched both as Sterna hergii.

Upon this point Colonel Legge, author of the " Birds of Ceylon,"
argues with some force : " Terns of wide range vary much in size, and
the Bass Strait Tern is the smallest fonn of the Crested Tern of the
Indian Seas, the gi'adation in size, however, in specimens from both
localities being so regular that the southern bird is /not considered by
Mr. Saunders to hold its own as a distinct species. When examining

838 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

the specimens in,lxis collection, I found <S'. poliocerca to range as low as
12'75 in the wing as against 15'12 in the lai'gust specimens from the
Persian Gulf. Since coming to lasmania I have^ prociued a fully adult
specimen with a wing 12-0, and I find the bu'd is dafl'erent in its note^and
habits from the Indian Teni, and that the plumage is beautifully
suffused with rose-coloui' on the luider sm"face, a featiu"e not observed
in specimens of true S. bergii. Should individuals from all pajrts of
Australian seas show the same size, .1 am of opinion that <S'. poliocerca
may stand as a distinct species."

Colonel Legge, on the authority of Mr. G. K. Hinsby, the well-knovm
Tasmamian collector, states that the niunber of eggs laid by /b'. puliocerca
is two, whereas the birds I found nesting on a rock off Rottuest Island,
Western Australia, which axe reckoned to be the true S. bergii, were
each sitting on one egg only. From an oologist's standpoint these facts
appear vmdoubted evidence in favour of two species, or at least two
distinct varieties.

Ihe following is Mr. A. E. Brent's evidence :• — '" About the third week
in November (1880), wc foiuid these birds nesting in company with the
little Sliver Gulls in large numbers on the small islands in the southern
part of Tasmania. In most cases the bu'ds were sitting on one egg,
but many of the nests contained two eggs. The nests wei'e so numerous
that it was almost impossible to walk amongst them without treading
on the eggs."

Before leaving the Bass Strait species, I may mention that dm-ing the
visit of the Field Naturalists' Expedition to Furneaux Group, we
disturbed a small colony on the Samphire Kiver Reef in Franklin
Soimd, commencing to nest, and they had not laid. Date, 18th
November, 1893. We were also informed that these Terns bred in
numbers on a rock (Bramble?) lying to the south of Goose Island.

Touching the nesting place of H. bcryit or the proper Crested Tern,
it is delightful for me to reflect that I gained my experience on probably
the same isolated rock off Rottnest Island where the good Gilbert,
years before, found these fine birds in such great numbers breeding.
I give my own pictm-e of the place. Date, 21st November, 1889.
Direction Islet is a huge solitary sandstone rock, about thirty feet high
and perhaps half a cable in length. On its simimit gi'ows, in spai-se
quantity, jiig-face weed and other short vegetation. We obt;iin landing
in a nook on the lee side, where, close by, we are gi-eeted by a pail" of
fully-fludged yoxuig, tenanting a Fish Hawk or Osprey's aerie. We
proceed to examine the rock. Some of the common Terns are evidently
on good terms with the owners of the Osprey's nest, beca^use they have
deposited their eggs and are prosecuting then- task of incubation near
the base of the aerie, perfectly fearless of their large raptorial friends.
However, the majority of the Tenis prefer breeding at the other and
more precipitous (weather) end of the rock. Here is a. scene to gladden
the heart of any naturalist. It fairly thrilled lue with delight. Standing
upon the apex of the, rock there appeaa.s before us a, congregation, con-
sisting of scores of these lar-gc handsome sea/-birds. Their silvei^ dresses,
relieved by black caps and yellowish bills, arc in agreeable contrast to
the duU-coloui-ed rocks and vegetation, with theii- liberal dressing of

z

'■ft

w

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 839

bird-lime. The sea rolls caJnily below. The day is superbly hue ; a
gentle breeze is flicking the sky with ciniis-clouds — just a light a photo-
grapher loves — so here i plant the camera aud ehiuice an exposure of
the bird colony. (See illustration.) Approaching nearer, the majority
ot the bu'ds rise from their egg or newly-liatched yoimg, flymg
backwai'ds, forwards, and overhead with clamorous voices. There are
no nests except a slight depression in the sand or pig-face weed. A
single egg only is deposited, as hu'ge. as a domestic fowl's, which is of a
stone-coloiu", marked beautifully with dark, fantastical hieroglyphics.
For cuiiosity's sake I measure the distance betwixt the nests : an
average of six gave 14 inches apart — hai'dly the total length of the bird,
which is 19 inches. The yoimg in down are dear little objects, being
white underneath, aud mottled on the back with gi"ey, brown, and black.
Overheiid a pair of the lai'ger Caspian Terns, with blood-red bills opened
wide, are madly screecliing, making themselves lieard above their
confreres, the cause of their sohcitude being a pair of downy chicks,
near the lai'ge rookery.

A few of the Crested Terns breed on Abrolhos Islands further north.

Goidd mentions that this line Tern attracted the notice of Macgillivray
while cruismg in ToiTes Sti'ait, who supphed the following information : —
" This handsome Tern, which supplies the place of the S. ijoliocerca vipon
the north-east coast, is generally distxibvited from Lizard Island to the
southward, as far northward as Bramble Quay, and it is also foiuid in
Endeavour Strait. It was breeding on Lizard Island in the beginning
of May, and on Raine Island in June, when both eggs and young bu'ds
were procured ; in the latter locality I found it in three small parties,
upon a low ridge on one side of the island, depositing its single egg in
a shght hollow scooped out of the gi-oimd, in a bare, smooth spot,
sm-rounded with herbage. The bird was so much more shy than the
Sooty Tern aud Noddy that I was obliged to resort to the giui to prociu-e
specimens, as it would not allow me to approach sufficiently near to tlu'ow
a short stick with effect."

There must be some astonishing rookeries of Crested Terns within
the hmits of the Indian Empu-e, for Mr. Hume states that a boat sent
to a certain island for him by Capt. Wise, on the 1st Jvme, brought back
no less than 3,000 eggs, and the men said that they had not half robbed
the rocks. From another quarter some fishermen brought 7,000 fresh
eggs of the Crested Tern, which they were offering for sale as food at
at the rate of sixty for one iiipee.

The birds possibly group into such large colonies to better protect
themselves against the attacks of marauding gulls and other natural
enemies.

8 lO NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

645. — Sterna frontalis. Gray. — (6U4)
S. ini'luntirliiinrliu, Gould.

WHITE-FRONTED TERN.

Pij^ure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 26.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xx.v., p. 97.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Potts : Trans. New Zealand Inst..

vol. li., p. 76 (1870); BuUer : Birds of New Zealand {1873);

also vol. ii , p. 69 (188S) ; North : .Vustn. Mus. Cat., app. (1890).

GeiKjnipliinil JJIsiriliittioii . — Seas of Australia, in general aiid Tas-
mania ; also New Zealand.

Xest. — A slight depression on the ground amongst tussock-grass,
pig-face weed, or other shorti herbage, near the shore. Nests in colonies.

Eggs. — Clutch, two usually, tlu'ee occasionally ; oval inclined in
form; texture of shell ccmpaiatively fine; siiiface, faint trace oi
gloss ; colour, stony-grey, strongly blotched and spotted with rich
umber and dull-grey. Dimensions in inches of a pair: (1) 1-84 x 1-3,
(2) 1-78 X 1-3.

Observations. — The Wliite-fronted Tern is a more local form, being
confined chiefly to the coast lines of Australia, Tasmania, and New
Zealand. Gould shot his examples of this bird a few miles from Maria
Island, off the Tasmanian coast, but I liave not given his reference for
the description of eggs collected by Macgillivray on St. Paul's Island,
in the South Indian Ocean, 18.53. Tliey were most probably those of
S. viffafa (Gm.), which equals <S'. sancfi-jinuli, Gould's type, which
Macgillivray procured on that island. As stated, the true S. frontalis
belongs strictly to the Australian region.

I recollect one winter's day seeing a fine flock of these Terns fishing
for whitebait close to the head of the Town Pier, Port Melbourne.
The graceful actions of the birds diving into the water and captiuing
tiny fish were very entertaining. Sometimes they come quite close
to the pier, poise in the air for a second, then dive headlong into the
water, rising with a tiny silver-sided fish held in black bill. Tliese
clever little divers never appear to miss their aim. Their bodies, with
semi-closed wings, resemble an aiTow's head as they enter the water.
Occasionally a bird on the wing gives its whole bodv a nervous quiver,
aa if throwing off the salt sea-spray after a dive.

During the expedition of the Field Naturalists' Club to Furneaux
Group, 1893, we were delighted on landing on a rock between Woody
and Little "Woodv I.slands, in the Franklin Sound, to see a small colony
of Southern or White-fronted Terns, distinguished by their black hills,
hovering over or near. Although it was 18th November, they had not
laid, but would shortly do so, judging by the little depres.sions or pre-
jjarations of nesting-places in tciTaces prettily situated amongst the
short matted pig-face weed and other flowering herbage close to the
shore.

NESTS AND EGGS OF ACSTRALIAN BIRDS. 84 1

The eggs of the White-fronted Tern in my collection were taken
in New Zealand by that enthusiastic naturalist, Mr. J. Percy Seymour.

Mr. Seymoiu' lorwardcd the following interesting data wibli the speci-
mens : — " The Southern Tern breeds in great numbers on a small rock
lying a hltle dibUuiLC from Uceau Beacli, near JJimediu. It is called
Tomahawk Iskuid. I visited it on the 22nd November, 1883, and formd
literally thousands of eggs, laid in slight depressions of the groimd
without nests among maritime herbage, often so closely together that
it was impossible to step among them without treading on them. There
were usually two eggs in one nest, and occasionally (or rather fre-
quently) three. Many were hard set. On the same date, the following
year, a few eggs (fifty or sixty) were found on the same rock, and these
having been taken, the birds deserted it.

The late Mr. T. H. Potts remarked that the Southern Tern (men-
tioned under the synonym, Sterna lonyipennis, deposits its egg on the
bare rock, without the slightest protection, at a distance vaiying from
five to six feet and upwards from the line of high tide ; the egg must
often lie within reach of heavy showers of spray. Mr. Potts boheved
that this Tern invaiiably laid a single egg, but he was aware others
entertained a different opinion. On a i"ocky point in Port Cooper he
obsei-ved about two hundi'ed birds breeding, end except in three cases
only, the eggs were solitary. The young, covered with mottled-grey
down, varying in shade to almost brown, are quite helpless for two or
three weeks after hatcliing, and appear unable to attempt securing
safety by swimming like young Gulls when alarmed.

Sir Walter BuUer writes : " My son Percy, in December, observed
a vast crowd of Southern Terns on a small rock island near the Tarauaki
Sugar Loaves. This is a favourite breeding gi'ound, and the birds
were so closely packed that from the deck of the steamer they presen-
ted the appearance of a fall of snow. On one occasion the crew of the
' Hinemoa ' landed at the place and collected several bucketfuls of eggs.

" On the small island of Motiti I found a large community of them
occupying one end of it and the Red-billed Gulls the other, the two
nesting places being as far apart as possible. On the high intervening
ground the Black-backed Gull had estabhshed a breeding place.

" On its nesting grounds being invaded tliis Tern shows fight in a
vei-y detennined manner, by coming in a bee-line at the intruder's face
till within a couple of feet, and then darting. oft' at a sharp angle, with a
snapping ciy of remonstrance. Captain Fairchild has known them even
bolder, and has had his hat knocked off by the rapid actions of their
wings. By the end of Februaiy the yoimg birds have joined the
general community on the sandbanks, but they may be easily distin-
guished by the dark plumage of their upper surface and their more
sibilant cry."

8^2 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

646. !5TEUNA AN^STHETA, Scopoli.— ( 612)

lb', ijanayensisy Gmeiiu.
BROWN-WINGED (PANAYAN) TERN.

figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. a.

Rejerence. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. loi.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould: Birds of Australia (1848),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 411 (1865) ; Legge : Birds of Ceylon,
p. 1042 (1880); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., pi. 356 (1889);
Hume — Uates : Nests and liggs of Indian Birds, vol. 111.,
p. 300 (1890).

Giiiyrapldcu} Di.itriljutiun. — Seas of Ausu'alia iu general; also
trojjical and sub-tropical seas of other parts of the world.

Nest. — A bare spot under shelving stones, or a crevice iu a rock,
sometimes under a bush, &c., chiefly on isolated islets. Nests single or
six or seven near each other, according to the situation.

E(j(jn. — Clutch, one; broad oval iu shapa; textui'e of shell com-
paratively line ; smiace sUghtly glossy ; colour, varies from warmish-
white to pinkish-buff, occasionally with a perceptible greenish tinge,
blotched and spotted, pai-ticularly on the apex, with dark chestnut or
rich reddish-brown and dull pui-plish-brown. When held up to the
hght the inside lining appears of a beautiful sea-green. Dimensions in
inches; (1) I'S x 1-26, (2) 1-78 x 1-33, (3) 1-77 x 1-3, (4) 1-76 x 1-3.
(Plato 24.)

Observations. — The Panayan or Brown-winged Tern, with its piu'e
white uiider-parts and dark back, is an elegant bird, and, except for its
lesser size, resembles the Sooty Tern in appearance.

The Panayan Teru frequents the tropical and sub-tropical seas,
being migratory iu parts. It visits the north-eastern coast of Australia
and as far south on the western coast as Rottnest Island, where I found
it breeding.

I did not find the pretty Tern exactly on Rottnest Island, but on
Phillip and Duck Rocks adjacent thereto, where I took several single
eggs on the 21st November, 1889. Sometimes the birds were so far in
the clefts of rocks as to be nearly in darkness. One of the sitting birds
I caught was a male. Pilot Giimorc and his crew were good enough to
take me out to explore these rocks. On Phillip Rock, which lies at
the entrance of Thompson Bay, we observed several pairs of the Brown-
winged Tents, with swallow-like forked tails and graceful buoyant flight,
crossing and recTOSsing the face of the islet, uttoiing cries like the
barking of a small dog. We searched under the shelving rocks and
loose slabs of sandstone for their eggs, and were rewarded by discoveiiiig
one or two examples far down in dai-kened recesses, with the male birtl
sitting. On Duck Rock, near the pilot look-out station, we took eight
or nine single eggs of the Panayan Tern. The eggs were all fresh.
This trip we were iu charge of Pilot Butcher.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 843

The following mouth I wa-s further north ou the fascinating
Abrolhos Islands, so prolific for brooding sea-birds of many kinds.
Here and tliere in rocky fissures, witliout the slightest nest, round about
the shores of Rat Island and on other rocks, I found more Brown-
winged Terns' eggs, which, when fresh, looked exceedingly pretty,
blotched and spotted with red.

Gilbert took eggs of the Panayan or Browu-winged Teni on Abrol-
hos, and it is tiiithfully recoi'ded that the breeding season commences
in the latter part of November. In their breeding habits these Terns
are not gi'egarious (except when a few pairs take to a single rock), as
most other species of Terns are.

It may be interesting to state that Captain Wickliam, R.N., when
siu-veying Houtman's Abrolhos, 1839-40, in the " Beagle," had Gilbert
on board. I believe there still remains to this day evidence of the
" Beagle " camp near two wells of good water on the northern gi'oup.

Macgillivi-ay, during the voyage of the " Rattlesnake," informed
Gould that he first met the Panayan Tern on Solitary Island, near Cape
York, subsequently on Bramble Quay, in Torres Strait, where it was
breeding in small numbers, and where it deposits its single egg in holes
of loose, friable, coral sandstone. While turning over some dead turtle
shells, MacgilUvray was surprised to find beneath several of them pretty
Terns sitting upon their egg without any nest.

At the end of November, 1896, on Hope Islands, about eleven miles
from the mouth of the Bloomfield River, Northern Queensland, Mr. D.
Le Souef writes : " At one end of the island Panayan Terns (Sferna
ancEstheia ) were noticed flying about in gTeat nvimbers and in a liigh
state of alann, and on going there and hunting on the giound among
the scanty vegetation, just above high-water mark, we succeeded in
finding many of their single eggs, laid on the bare ground under some
cover, such as the thin straggling bushes, or, more generally still, the
roots and leaves of pandanus pahns."

Mr. E. M. Cornwall informs me he has found these Terns breeding
further south on Dunk Island, near Cardwell.

One of Mr. Hume's informants, mentioned in " Nests and Eggs of
Indian Birds," states that the Panayan Tern lays two to fom- eggs on
mud-banks. Surely these eggs must be referable to some other species
of Teni.

Breeding months, October or November to January.

8^ A'ESTS A. WD hGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

647. — Sterna tuliginosa, Giueliu. — (,611)
SOOTY TERN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 32.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. ,\xv., p. 106.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould: Birds of Australia (1848);
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 410 (1865) ; Audubon : Birds of
America, vol. vii., p, 252 (1844); Legge : Birds of Ceylon,
p. ioj8 (1S80) ; Crowfoot (Metcalfe): Ibis, p. 266 (18S5) ;
North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 357 and app., pi. 21, fig. i (iSSg) ;
Hume — Dates : Nests and Kggs of Indian Birds, vol. iii.,
p. 303 (1S90).

Geographical Distrihution. — Seas of Austi'alia in general and Tas-
mania ( ?) ; also tropical and .siib-tropical seas where suitable islands
and reefs exist.

Nest. — A bare spot on the sand, on rocks, or upon the ground under
bu.shes. Nests in great conipanius upon certain suitable islands, and
usually associated with those of the Noddies (Anoua stoUduf).

Eyg^. — Clutch, one ; broad oval in shape ; textm-o of shell com-
paratively fine ; suiiace slightly glossy ; c oloiir, varies from warniish-
wliite to a pronounced pinkish tinge, blotched and spotted, especially
about the apex, with chestnut or rich redchsh-brown and dull piuplish-
brown. Occasionally on a rookery a very wann-coloured egg may be
found, and sometimes one entirely devoid of markings. When held
up to light the inside lining of the shell appears yellowish-white.
Dimensions in inches of examples from various localities: — Abrolhos
Islands, West Australia^(l) Ii05 x 1-44, (2) 1-99 x 1-45, (3) 1-85 x 1-38;
Norfolk Island— (1) 2-18 x 1-52, (2) 2-1 x 1-41; Maiden Island (mid-
Pacific)— (1) 1-98 x 1-39, (2) 1-93 x 1-4.

Observationn. — Tlie Sooty Tern is one of the most familiar of its
family, being found on islands suitable to its habits in tropical and sub-
tropical regions. I could never understand why tiie bird is called
Sooty, when all its under parts are white, only the upper surface, as in
the Panayan or Browii-winged Tern, is dark.

Although the Sooty Tern is common elsewhere in seas siiiiouiiding
Austraha, it is rarely seen on the southern coast. I have seen eggs
supposed to have been collected on Green Island, on the Fuincaux
Group, Bass Strait, but I liave been unable to obtain conriniiatory
evidence of the statement. It is one of the common sea-birds found
breeding on Norfolk Island, off the east coast.

Gould reports that Gilbei't found the Sooty Tern breeding on
Houtman's Abrolhos, December (1839), and Mr. Macgillivray in Ton-es
Strait, in May and June (1844?).

In the former locality, when the guest of Mr. Broadhurst and his
manager, Mr. Beddoes, I enjoyed my pleasant experience of this bird,
which I invariably associated with the Noddy Tern, the latter building

NESTS AA'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 845

their nests upon the saltbushcs, while the Sooty Terns were nesting
on tlie bare ground beneath.

On the afternoon of the 9th December we strolled over Rat Island.
What a woiiderfvil revelation ! Wliy, the whole place is actually alive
with birds, some breeding on every bush, some breeding vmder the
bushes, and some breeding beneath the bushes undergi-ouud. Words
fail, utterly fail, to convey even au idea of the marvellous scene. The
birds ai'e perfectly fearless of our presence. We make our way between
the dark-coated Noddy Terns, which cover the saltbushes as well as
the groimd in all directions, uttering defiant, bark-like notes. Others
just move out of the way with croaking sounds, exposing their single
egg on a seciu-e platform nest of seaweeds. Prolonged guttural screams
issue from underneath the bushes from Sooty Terns, likewise sitting
upon a single egg, but on the bare gi'ound, their enraged mates flying
about our heads, filling the air with squeaking notes of anger, and some
being iiide enough to strike oiu- hats, while higher still overhead is a
cloud of Sooties — bachelors probably — calling " wide-awake" everywhere.
Tlie term wide-awake, as applied to these birds, is a sailor's name. In
conducting practical investigations in such a fascinating field of natui'al
liistory there is just one drawback to contend with, namely, the showers
of live guano that fall from the clouds of birds above. Locomotion
over the gi-ound is rendered extremely insecure, owing to its lioney-
combed nature, caused by countless bui'rows of Petrels, or so-called
Mutton Birds. Frequently, placing your feet upon apparently solid
gromid, down you sink to the knees in the dry, loose earth, which mns
into your boots like water, so when you return to the station you are
a pretty sight, head covered with new guano, boots filled with ancient
guano.

From Mr. Beddoes I learn that on the AbroLhos, Sooty Terns first
appear in tlie beginning of September, shortly after the Noddy Terns,
when they come in vast numbers for about a fortnight. After the
young are reared all depart about April.

In addition to the bird's usual call-note, " wide-awake," a long
guttural scream appears to be the alarm note, while " squeak " notes
are uttered in anger. The young in down have the underneath parts
(except throat) whitish, all the rest of the surface being mottled with
black, brown and wliite. Feet and bill are dark-coloured. At the time
of my visit (December) the breeding season for the Sooties appeared at
its height on the Abrolhos. But it is somewhat remarkable that on the
northern coast the laying season is six months later. It is just possible
that the birds wliich lay on Abrolhos and other southern localities, such
as Norfolk Island, when they depart in April nest again in the Tropics
during May and June. This would be an exceedingly interesting point
to determine.

On Raine's Islet and Bramble Key or Quay, Macgillivray found pro-
digious numbers of breeding Sooty Terns associated with Noddies. He
wrote : " The Sooty Tern deposits its soUtary egg in a slight excavation
in the sand, without fining of any kind. The egg varies considerably in
its markings. After the party employed in building the beacon on
Raine's Islet had been on shore about ten days, and the Terns had

846

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

had their nests robbed repeatedly, the birds collected into two or three
large flocks and laid their eggs in company, shifting theii- quarters
repeatedly on finding themselves continually molested, for new-laid eggs
wore much in request among people who had for some time been Uving
on ship's fare. By sitting down and keeping quiet I have seen the poor
birds dropping their eggs witliin two yards of where I sat, apparently
glad to get rid of their burden at all hazards. During the month of
June, 1844, about 1,500 dozen of eggs were prociu-ed by the party upon
the island. About the 20th June neai-ly one-half of the young birds
(hatched twenty-five or thirty days previously) were able to fly, and
many were quite strong upon the wing. Great numbers of young birds
unable to fly were killed for the pot : in one mess of twenty-two men
the average number consumed daily in June was fifty, and supposing
the convicts (twenty in number) to have consumed as many, 3,000 young
birds nuist have been killed in one month ; yet I could observe no
sensible diminution of the number of yoimg, a circumstance which will
give the reader some idea of the vast numbers of birds of this species
congi'egated on a mere vegetated sandbank Uke Raine's Islet."

It is stated that in some other parts of the world, notably in
America, the Sooty Tern sometimes lays three eggs. Probably the
statement is correct ; biit at all events, all those birds that lay in Aus-
traUan waters have only one egg. Some collectors say there is no
separating the eggs of the Sooty Tern from those of the Noddy, so
similar are they in appearance. As one who has nested among both
birds, I fail to see how the eggs can possibly be confounded. The Sooty
Terns' are finer in texture, have a slight lustre and are boldly marked :
those of the Noddy are entirely lustreless, having a soft appearance,
while the markings are likewise soft and not so numerous. Moreover,
upon the islands there can hardly be a mistake, for the Noddy eggs are
in nests, the Sooties' are upon the bare ground.

" It is said " (according to Howard Saunders) " that at Ascension
Island the Sooty Terns, or ' Wide-awakes,' come every eight months to
breed." Tliis is somewhat remarkable.

Tlie wonderful simultaneous laying 'of great flocks of these Terns,
mentioned by Mr. W. A. Dixon, F.C.S..* as having occurred on Maiden
Island (mid-Pacific), has not been noticed, at all events recorded, by
any other observer. After giving some useful information that the
" Wide-awakes " lay there in October and again in April, and that the
young are hatched in fifteen or sixteen days and remain nearly three
months upon the ground, Mr. Dixon proceeds to state : " In tlie end of
September the flock begins to collect, flying high in the air above the
spot where they intend to lay, a constant stream of birds flying to and
fro between the flock and the sea. Day by day the immense flock
flies lower and lower, till about the 22nd or 23rd October they are
skimming closely along the ground ; up to this time there are no eggs
to be found, even up to three o'clock of that day. The flock evidently
diminishes in number — the birds are down, an event which was looked

• "Nitural History of " .\ Oiiano Island."— Proc. Rov. See, N S. Wales, p ifis
(■877).

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 847

forward to with some anxiety, and by four o'clock there is an egg to
eveiy square foot of siuface.

This wonderful regularity of laying, if usual, may be said to eclipse
the regularity of the famous Mutton Birds (Piiffinus tenuirostrix).
Moreover, the majority of these birds usually lay at night or early in
the momingj not in the afternoon.

Nesting months in southern localities appear to be November,
December and January. Within the Tropics, April, May, and June

The illustration, " Flight of Sooty Terns," was taJien on Rat Island,
Houtman's Abrolhos.

648. — .Steuna nekeis. fJould. — (607)
WHITE-FACED TERNLET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 29.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 112.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ;
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 402 {1S65) ; Potts: Trans. New
Zealand Inst., vol. ii., p. 77 (1870); Ramsay: Proc. Linn.
See, N.S. Wales, vol. vii., p. 59 (1S82) ; Buller : Birds of New
Zealand (1S731, also vol. ii. p. 76 (1S88) ; North: Austn. Mus.
Cat., p 358 (18S9), and app. ii. (iSgo).

GengrapliirciJ Dixfribufion. — Seas of Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, South and West Australia and Tasmania ; also New Zealand.

Nest. — Merely a slight depression in the sand or shingle. Usually
on islands, singly or in small gi-oups.

Ei/ffs. — Clutch, two, occasionally three ; oval in shape ; texture
of shell fine ; sruiace, faint trace of gloss ; colour, warm stony-
grey, mediiunly blotched with dark umber and gi'ey. Some of the
markings have the appearance of having been smudged. Dimensions
in inches of a pair: (1) 1-5 x -92, (2) 1-42 x 1-0. (Plate 24.)

Ohservations. — The faiiy-like little Tern — the smallest of its race —
is found in AustraUan seas, chiefly south of the Tropics and New Zealand.
Mr. Masters' S. incnnspkua is now deemed to be identical with S. nereis,
probably in seasonal change.

Gould, or rather Gilbert, mentions the immense flock of Temlets
during the breeding season on Rottnest and Garden Islands on the
western coast, where, I think, they breed in small groups.

It was from Camach or Garden Island I I'eceived a small series of
eggs, from kindly disposed fishermen. On Pelsart Island, Abrolhos,
I myself took a few pairs of eggs of Little Terns, which were nesting on
a coral ridge in close proximity to a colony of Roseate Terns. Date,
23rd November, 1889. The coloui'ations of both species of eggs
hamionize in a remarkable degree with their siuTovm dings. Yoimg in
down of this Tern are dull or yellowish-white ; bill and feet light-yellow.

848 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIA A/ BIRDS.

Mr. Jas. MtDougall, writing from Yorke Peninsula, South Australiia,
says ; " I send you two eggs of Stermila nereis, but not the true clutch.
These were got in November, 1886, at a sandy point, about two miles
from Edithburgh, laid in a depression in the sand or seaweed, a few yards
above high-water mark. There are two broods, one in November and
one at tlie New Year. Tlie birds are veiy numerous, and hover screech-
ing above the head of an intruder, darting at him if he approach the
nest too closely. The birds, which are seen seldom, and then only
singly, are already beginning to assemble."

I am inclined to think that the second broods mentioned by
Mr. McDougall are merely birds that have laid late in the season.

Breeding months, November, December and Januai-y.

649. — Stern.'V sinensis, GmeUii.
S. p/iin if(, Gould.

WHITE-SHAFTED TERNLET.

Figure. — Gould — Sharps : Birds of New Guinea, vol. v., pi. 72.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. x.w., p. 113.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Legge : Proc. Zool. See, p. 377
(1875), also Birds of Ceylon, p. 1021 (1S80) ; Campbell:
Southern Science Record (1883), also Nests and Eggs Austn.
Birds, pi. 3 (1883); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., app. {1S90);
Hume — Gates : Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds, vol. iii.,
p. 312 (1890.

GengrajihicnJ Dutrilmtinii. — Seas of Northern Teixitory, Queensland
and New South Wales ; also New Caledonia, Malayan Arcliipelago,
Philippine Islands, China Seas up to Japan, and Bay of Bengal.

Nest. — Like that of iS'. nereis, merely a slight depression in the sand.

Eggs. — Clutch, two to three ; roundish or round oval in shape ;
texture of shell fine ; surface, slight trace of gloss ; colour. Ught stony-
grey, marked with small blotches, spots and splashes of umber and
dull grey. Dimensions in inches of a clutch: (1) 1'28 x -97,
(2) 1-28 X -98, (3) 1-27 x -98.

Ohservatidus. — Tiiis other gi-aceful and elegant Tenibt enjoys a
more northern habitat, ranging away up to Japanese waters, where it
lays. It has been found as fai- south as the northern coast of New
South Wales, where it also breeds.

The "Records of the Australian Museum" (1890), vol. i., p. 39,
state : " This bird was found breeding by Messrs. Grime and Yardley,
during a visit to the Tweed Hirer heads, on 7th October, 1889. The
eggs, two in number for a sitting, were laid in a slight depression in the
sajid, all the eggs taken at that time being in an iulvanced state of
incubation Skins of the parent birds were obtained

NESTS AXD EGGS OF .ITiTff.l/i/.l.V BIRDS. 84Q

with the eggs and forwai-ded for identification." In the same district,
at the Clarence Heads. Mr. S. W. Jackson found a small colony of
White-shafted Tcmlcts nesting on the sands. Tlie clutches contained
two or three eggs, mostly the latter nvunber. Date, 9th November,
1894.

It is somewhat remarkable that the habits of a bird foimd in southern
localities differ in its northern habitat. For instance, according to
Mr. Hume, the White-shafted Tenilet (if it really be that species) is
reckoned a river Tern in India, laying a complement of four eggs on the
sand banks, instead of laying a pair of eggs on the seashore, as in the
southern tropics. Mr. Hume also remarks that the eggs of this Ternlet,
more perhaps than any othei-s, change colour with keeping, even although
all light be rigidly excluded.

650. — Sterna melanaithen, Teniminck. — (606)
BLACK-XAPED TERN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 2%.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 126.

Previous Dexripliens of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883), also Nests and Eggs .\ustn. Birds, pi. 3, fig. 606 (1883) ;
North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 356 (1889) ; Hume — Dales : Nests
and Eggs of Indian Birds, vol. iii., p. 302 (1890).

Gengrapliical Distribution. — Seas of North-west AustraUa, Northern
TerritoiT, Queensland, and New South Wales ; also Fiji and Polynesia
in general, Malayan Archipelago, Philippine Islands, Cliina Sea and
North Indian Ocean.

Xesf. — A slight hollow in the sand, just above high-water mark, on
islands, usually coral.

Ei/f/x. — Clutch, two ; oval in shape ; texture of shell comparatively
fine ; surface without gloss ; colour, vanes, but usually a delicate stony-
gi'ev, moderatelv mai^ked all over with large spots and blotches, chiefly
of innber and dull gi'cy, the dtill-grey or underlying blotches being more
numei'ous. Dimensions in inches of a proper pair: (1) 1-62 x 1-13,
(2) 1-59 X 1-12; of a smaller-sized set: (1) 1-54 x M, (2) 1-52 x M.

Ohxervafionii. — This smaller and elegant Tern would appear generally
to frequent the islands of the tropical Indian and Western Pacific
Oceans. Mr. Howard Satmders has remarked that its range appears
to be dependent in a great measiure upon the existence of coral islands
of a certain size.

Gould says the Black-naped Tern is one of the most beautifid species
of its genus, and may be distinguished from all the others by the snowy
whiteness of its croviai and by tlie deep gorget-shaped black mark on
the occiput.
54

8c;o NESTS A.VD LOGS OF ACSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Mr. Macgillivray wrote : " This beautiful bird is very local in its
breeding places, the only one Imown to me being one of the ' three
sandbanks' near Sir Charles Hardy's Islands. The eggs are two in
number, deposited in a slight hollow in the sand. I have seen this bird
on another neighbouring sandbank, also on Solitary Island, near Cape
York, and in Endeavour Strait, but was unable to procure a specimen
from any of the last-mentioned locahties on account of its excessive
shyness. It is one of the most noisy of the Terns, and I generally saw
it in small parties of half-a-dozen or thereabouts. The fully-fledged
young of the year differs from the adult in having the black on the head
dark-brovra, mottled with white, and tlie whole of the upper surface
and wings variegated vpith dark brownish-grey."

The eggs I possess of the Black-naped Tern are a beautiful and
softly-coloiu-ed pair, collected 1898 by my old fi-icnd and field natiu-alist
Ml-. Ed. M. Cornwall, at Dunk Island, Rockingham Bay, North Queens-
land. The birds commenced to lay about the end of October and the
beginning of November, the eggs being deposited on the bare sand
just above high-water mark. Mr. Cornwall intended to make further
observations on the nidification of this pretty Tern had he been able
to remain on that verdure-clad islet.

According to Mr. Allan Hume, who obtained his information from
Captain Wimberley, the Black-napcd Tern breeds on the Andaman and
Nicobar Islands, where it generally lays between the middle of May
and the first week in August. Rocky islets a little detached from the
main island, and but for scanty scrub entirely bare, seem to be chosen
for nesting places, the bird laying its eggs either upon a little collection
of small lumps of coral and stone on the bare rock or in a little
depression in the sand.

651. — Procelsterna cinerea, Gould. — (616)
GREY NODDY.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii.. pi. 37.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. x.xv., p. 135.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. ii., p. ^121 (1865); Crowfoot (Metcalfe) : Ibis. p. 265
(1885) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., app., pi. 21, fig. 6 (1889).

Oeoyra'phical Distribution. — -Seas of Northern TerritoiT, Queensland
(probably), and New South Wales ; also Lord Howe, Norfolk, and neigh-
bom'ing islands, Kermadec Group, lac.

Nest. — A bare spot on a. rock or floor of the ledge of a cliff. Some-
times traces of a nest are indicated by bones, bits of hei-bage, &c.

Ef/c/s. — Clutch, one; oval in shape, or elliptically inclined; textvu'e
of shell somewhat fine and thin ; surface without gloss ; coloiu", stony-
white, moderately marked with small blot<'tu>s and spots of umber
or reddish-brown, and, chiefly, dull purplish-grey. Dimensions of
selected examples- (11 1-7''>v-1-9 l'^\ 1-69 x MS. (S'* l-G'ixl'SS,
(4) 1-67 X 1-15, (5) 1-67 X 1-2.

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AVSTRALLAN BIRDS. 85 I

Observations. — This charming little species is an inhabitant of the seas
bordering the northern and eastern coasts of Australia, extending its
range eastward across the Pacific.

Macgillivray sent beautiful specimens of eggs of the Grey Noddy to
Gould, but no locality is given. It was through the kindness of
Mr. F. M. Nobbs that I received a dozen of tluse rare eggs, collected on
islets off Norfolk Island, where they were taken from ledges of rocks in
cliffs or on bouldei-s. Date, 2nd November, 1886.

The general breeding season is from September to January.

Dr. Metcalfe's testimony is (Dr. Crowfoot, " Ibis," 1885) : " These
Grey Tenas, called by tlie Norfolk Islanders the ' Little Blue Petrel,'
are fairly nmiierous dimng the breeding season. They lay theu- eggs
on Phillip and Nepean Islands and the neighbouring rocks. Tlie eggs
are usually placed on inaccessible ledges, but often on the sand, sometimes
not many feet from the sea — but usually from eighty to two thousand
feet. They make no attempt at a nest and lay only one egg, which is
the most easily broken of all the sea-birds' eggs foimd on these islands."

652. — Anous stolidus, Linna;us. — (613)
NODDY.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 34.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 136.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ;
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 416 (1865) ; *Sharpe : Trans. Roy.
Sec, vol. clxviii., p. 466 {1S7S) ; Legge : Birds of Ceylon, p.
1044 (1880) ; Crowfoot (Metcalfe) : Ibis, p. 264 (1885) ; North :
Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 359 and app., pi. 21, fig. 2 (18S9) ; Hume —
Oates : Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds, vol. iii., p. 315 (1890).

GeographicaJ Disfrihuliou. — Seas of Australia in general; also
tropical and sub-tropical seas. According to Saunders, breeding as a
nile where foimd.

Ne.st. — Somewhat flat, constructed of twigs, sea^weed, sponges, &c.,
and placed upon the ground or on low bushes (salt), tufts of gi-ass, &c.
In some locahties there is scarcely any nest — merely a few bits of herbage
mixed with animal dehris, such as bones, &c. Nests in great colonies,
usually in company with Sooty Terns (S. fuJigiiiosa), upon certain
islands. A fairly built nest measures 10 to 12 inches across by about
2 inches thick.

Eggs. — Clutch, one ; elliptically inclined in shape ; textiu-e of
shell coarse ; surface without gloss ; coloiu", soft or pinkish-white,
mai-ked moderately, and chiefly on the apex, with loifous-brown and dvdl
purplish-brown. This egg may readily be distinguished from that of
the Sooty Tern by its coarser shell, softer markings, and by the dark-green

' No dimensions given.

>^e;2 nests and EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

inside lining of the .shell. Dimensions in inches from vario'US loealities —
Abi-olhos Islands, Western Australia: (1) 2-17 x 1-45, (2) 2-13 x 1-46,
(3) 1-85 X 1-41. From Norfolk Island: (1) 2-15 x 1-4, (2) 2-05 x 1-4.
From Ma.lden Island (mid-Pacific): (1) 2-2 x 1-48, (2) 2-1 x 1-46.
(Plate 24).

Ohservafio?!^. — The Noddy Tern is probably the most numerous of
all oui- sea birds — of Terns at all events — on tropical and sub-tropical
islands. The bird is rarely seen off the southern coast of Australia.
The Noddy — with familiar dusky plumage, relieved by the crown of the
head, moixld)' white — is as harmless as a. dove.

Many liave been the winters describing its great numbers and its
nesting places. Gilbert, in Gould's work, has left us a faithful picture
of what he saw of the crowds of Noddies on Hwitnian's Abrolhos,
Western Australia, during his explorations there in 1839. During my
own visit to that most interesting gi-oup of limestone islands, exactly
fifty years afterwards, I found bird-life there in much about the same
state as when disturbed by Gilbert.

Some of the islands — which, by the way, are about fifty miles off
Champion Bay — for prodigious numbers of birds, brought to my recollec-
tion the incident mentioned in the jomniey of the Israelites, when Quail
fell among them. Truly it seemed to me, when upon Rat Island, the face
of the earth as well as the sea. was covered with birds " as it were a day's
journey on this side, and as it were a day's journey on the other side,"
round about our camp. For there were Noddy Terns, on their sea-weed
built nests, breeding as closely as they could pack upon the salt-bushes ;
Sooty Terns were^ croaking over tlieir tasks on the floor of the ground
under th& bushes; while the ground luiderneath, being honeycombed
with buiTOWs, contained brooding Petrels, which moaned and groaned,
especially at night, when it might really be imagined " the wliole
creation " (that is the island) " groaneth and travaileth in pain."

Mr. G. H. Beddoes (manager of the guano station) and I calculated
that there were about 300 acres on Rat Island occupied by birds, and
that they averaged at least one bird to every square yard, giving a total
of 1 ,452,000 birds on one small island alone. Reference to the illustra-
tion, " Noddies Nesting," will give a very fair idea of the face of the
island. Some of my observations relating to the Sooty Tern may
be read in connection with tlie Noddies, which are usually associated
together in breeding colonies.

Records kept upon Rat Island show that the Noddy Terns appeared
for the breeding season, 14t]i August, 1888, and 16th Augu.st, 1889,
respectively. They are usually first heard at night, ;urd then appear
gradually for a few days before they an-ive in great crowds. Tlie
earliest eggs are deposited about the beginning of October, but lajnng
continues for the two or three following months. About the break up
of the weather in April, all tlie Noddies, with their young, depart. Not
a solitai-y bird remains. A week or two pi-ior to the final exodus,
the birds leave the island daily, Init retmm at night. This may bo a
method of exercising the young before the last great fiighl. There

^'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 853

is a c'lu'ious incidt'ut of all tliesc birds liaviag suddenly left R;it Island
for about a fortnight diu-ing the month of October, when a cold rain
set iu, leaving eggs and young to perish. Upon slight showei-s of rain
falling, the birds fly out to tlie shoals upon the reefs and skim over the
water in a remarkable manner, as if fishing. The call-uote of the
Noddy is a coai-se gull-like bark. Young in down vaiy in colour from
light to dark sooty-brown, with the upper portion of the head mouldy-
wliite. Bill and feet black.

I can vouch for the following accoimt by Gilbert : " The Noddy and
an allied species (the Lesser Noddy), ai-e extx'emely numerous on the
Houtmau's Abrollios, where they breed in prodigious numbers.
The present species lays its eggs in November and December,
on a nest constiiicted of sea^weed, about six inches in diameter,
and vaiying in height from foiu- to eight inches, but without
anything like regularity of fonn ; the top is nearly flat, there
being but a very slight liollow to prevent their single egg from
rolling off. The nests are so completely plastered vntli the
excrement of the bird, that at first sight they appear to be entirely
fonned of that material ; they ai-e either placed on the groiuid in a clear
open space, or on the tops of the thick scrub, over those of the Sterna
fiili(jiiio>(i, the two species incubating together with the most perfect
hannouy, and the bushes presenting a mottled appearance from the
great number of both species perched on the top — the male ( S. fuliyi-
iiosa) sitting quite close to the nest of the Noddy, while its mate is
beneath, performing the duties of incubation. On walking among the
nests, I was sui-prised to observe the pertinacity with which the birds
kept their post; in fact they would not remove from off the egg or the
young, but would suffer themselves to be trodden upon or taken off with
the hand ; and so thickly were the nests placed, that it was no easy matter
to avoid crushing either eggs or bkds at every step. By the middle of
Januaiy the eggs were nearly ready to hatch, and there would be an
overwhelming increase of this species yearly but for the check which
nature has provided against it in the presence of a small lizard, which
is very abimdant about their breedmg places, and which finds an easy prey
in the young of this Noddy and of Stcriiii fii/lgiiiosn. I am satis-
fied that not more than one out of every twenty birds hatched ever reaches
matimty, or lives long enough to take wing ; besides which, gieat
numbers of the old birds are constantly killed. These lizards do not
eat the whole bird, but merely extract the brain and vertebral mari'ow ;
the remainder is, however, soon cleared off by the Dermestcx lardariu^,
an insect which occuk in amazing numbers, and gave me a great dial of
uneasiness and constant trouble to presei-ve my collection fiom their
repeated attacks. I did not observe the Noddy on any but the South
Island. As it finds an abundant supply of food, consisting of small fish,
small mollusca, medusae, cuttle-fish, (fee, immediately outside the outer
reef, it has no occasion to go far out to sea.. I never obsei-ved it feeding
in the smooth; quiet water between the outer reef and the islands."

" The Large Noddy," says Macgillivi-ay, " is abundantly distributed
over ToiTes Strait ; but I never met with it to the southward of Raines
Islet, on which, as at Bramble Quay, it was found breeding in prodigious

854 ^^^STS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

numbers. Unlike its constant associate, the Sooty Tern, it constructs
a shallow nest of small twigs, arranged in a slovenly manner, over wnich
ai-e strewed about a handlul of fragments of coral from the beach, sheUs,
and occasionally portions of tortoise-shell and bones of tm-tle. The
nest is sometimes placed upon the gi-oimd, but more usually upon tufts
of grass and other herbage at about a foot from the gi-ound.''

i'he Common Noddies breed on Phillip and Nepean islets, adjacent to
Norfollt Iskud. Mr. G. K. Beddoes, who visited Ashmore Shoals, about
ninety miles from Timor, reported to me that Tenis, especially Noddies,
were exceedingly plentiful there.

At the risk of being tedious I mention the Noddies at home in an
extra^Australian locality. Here is a pictui-e by Audubon. " The
Noddies," says the great ornitliologist, " fonn regular nests of twigs and
dxy gi^ass, wliich they place on the bushes or low trees, but never on the
ground. On visiting their island on the 11th of May, 1832, I was sur-
prised to see that many of them were repairing and augmenting nests
that had remained throughout the winter, while others were employed
in constinicting new ones, and some were ah'eady sitting on their eggs.
In a gi-eat many instances the repaired nests formed masses ne;u-ly two
feet m height, and yet all of them had only a shght hollow for the egg,
broken shells of which were foiuid among the entire ones, as if they had
beer pui-posely placed there. The birds did not discontinue^ their labours,
althovigh there were nine or ten of us walking among the bvishes, and
when we had gone a few yards into the thicket, thousands of them flew
quite low over us, some at times coming so close as to enable us to catch
a few of them with the hand. On one side might be seen a Noddy
canying a stick in its bill, or picking up something to add to its nest ;
on the other several were seen sitting on their eggs imconscious of danger,
while their mates brought them food. The greater part rose on the
wing as we advanced, but re-alighted as soon as we had passed. The
bushes were rarely taller than ourselves, so that we could easily see

the eggs in the nests The Noddy lays three eggs,

which average 2 inches in length by lij inches in breadth, and ai-e of a
reddish-yellow coloiu-, spotted and patched with dull-red and faiiit-pui-ple.
They afford excellent eating, and our sailors seldom failed to collect
bucketfuls of them daily during oiu- stay at the Tortugas."

653. — MicRANous TENUiROSTRis, Temiuinck, — (614)
Aiiiiux me/anojix, Gould.

LESSER NODDY.

I-igiire.— Gould : Birds of .\ustralia, fol., vol. vil., pi. 35.
Reference.— Cai. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 144.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs.—V,o\x\A: Birds of .\iistralia (1S4SI;
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 419 (1865).

Geogrdiiliiritl Distriljiition.^'itiiis in general of Australia, except
perhaps Victoria ; also New Guinea, across tlie Indian Ocean to Mas-
carene Islands, Madagascar and the Seychelles.

A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTHAtJAN BIRDS. 855

Nest. — About 6 inches across, slightly concave, constructed of sca-
wei d, iJtc., cai'clessly thrown together, so that portions hang downiward
for 10 or 12 inches. Situated in the fork or elbow of mangi-ove branches.
In colonies.

Eggs. — Clutch, one ; elliptical in shape ; textiu-e of shell somewhat
coarse ; surface without gloss ; colour, soft or wann white, marked on
the apex, and sparingly elsewhere, with dark or iiifous-brown and auil
puip!ish-gi-ey. Frequently the markings are rendered nearly obsolete
by reason of a coating of limy matter. Inside lining of the shell, when
iield up to the light, sea-giecn. Dimensions in inches of six selected
specimens; (1) 1-84 x 1-26, (2) 1-84 x 1-2, (3) 1-8 x 1-22, (4) 1-75 x 1-19,
(5) 1-73 X 1-26, (6) 1-73 x 1-2. (Plate 24.)

Uhservatimu. — This peaceful little Noddy, besides frequenting the
seas on both the east and west of Australia, ranges across the Indian
Ocean.

Pelsart Island, Houtmans AbroUios, Western Australia, is one of
theu- breeding places, where they resort in great numbers diH-ing the
season, crowding their nests of seaweed on the mangrove trees.

Respecting this rookeiy, Gilbert wi-ote : " I have seen many vast
flocks of birds, but I confess 1 was not at all prepared for the siuprise I
experienced in witnessing the amazing clouds, literally speaking, of these
bii-ds when congregating in the evening while they had their young to
feed. Dui-ing their alternate departure and return with food, they
presented a most singular appearance. From their breeding place to
the outer reef, beyond the smooth water, the distance is fom- miles, and
over this space the numbers constantly passing were in such close aiTay
that they foi-med one continuous and unbroken line. After the yomig
bu-ds were able to accompany their parents, I obsei-\'ed that they all left
the breeding or roosting place in the morning and did not again retiUTi
imtil evening, the iirst-comers apparently awaiting the arrival of the
last before finally roosting for the night. It is when thus assembled
that their immense numbers strike you with astonishment. Even those
who have witnessed the vast flights of the Passenger Pigeon, so vividly
described by Audubon, can hardly avoid expressing surprise at seeing
the multitudes of these birds, which, at simset, move in one dense mass
over and around the roosting place, when the noise of the old birds, the
quack and the piping whistle of the young ones, ai-e almost deafening.
Like its near ally, it commences the task of incubation in December,
and lays but a single egg : while sitting on which, or tending its young, it
is veiy easilv caught, as it will suffer itself to be taken ofl' the nest rather
than quit it. It fonns an excellent article of food, and several hundreds
were daily killed diuing our stay on the island. As this bii-d resorts to
the upper branches alone, it is seciu'e from the attacks of the lizard, so
destructive to the Noddy, the animal not being able to climb the branches
with sufiScient facility to capture it; and this may doubtless be one of
the causes why it is more numerous than any of the many other birds
inhabiting the island."

856 NESTS AND EGGS OF .AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

With Gilbei-t's account in my mind, it was on the tip-toe of excite-
ment that I landed on Pelsart Island on the morning of 23rd Decembei",
1889.

Ai'mod with my camera., collecting basket, &e., and accompanied by
an employe from the g^ano station of Messrs. Broadhm-st and McNeil,
I quickly made along the island. A walk of about three miles brouglit
us to inland lagoons, bordered with mangrove trees, among which the
Lesser Noddies dwell in myriads, and as they rose a black cloud of
feathered forms completely obscured the face of the sim. The Lesser
Noddies, as their name implies, are similar to the Noddies, but of
smaller size. In their domestic life, however, they difler much. First,
imUke the Noddies, which breed on bushes, the Lesser Noddies seek
trees, and while the Noddy is only a summer visitant, its smaller com-
peer remains through the whole yeai-. What a. wondei-ful scene
awaited us as we entered the trees ! Birds met lis at ever'y point
roosting on branches, on stems, or sitting upon seaweed-made nests,
each containing a solitai-y egg or young bird. A veiy objectionable
odour of fresh guano pei-x'aded the entire place ; eveiy tree-stem and
limb were wliitewashed with it, the yomig on the lower levels possessing
a most unenviable position, being bespattered beyond recognition by
tlieir brethren above. Taking examples of birds, young, and eggs, and
a pau- of photogi-aphs (see " Lesser Noddies Nesting "), we made all
haste back to the cutter and found them just ready to trip the anchor,
with a fair wind.

So ended my last day on that romantic collecting field — Houtman's
Abrolho.s — tmly a wonderland for breeding searbirds.

Young in do^vn : sooty-black, upper part of the head mouldy-wliite,
bill and feet black. The first eggs may be obsei-ved at the beginning
of September, but the climax of the breeding season is not reached till
December.

654. — M1CRAN0U.S LEUcocAi'iLLUs, Gould. — (6L5)
Aituii.'> mehiiiitt/niy.'s, Gray.

WHITE-CAPPED NODDY.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. \ii., pi. 36.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 145.

Previous Descriptions of Egj;s. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883), and Nests and Eggs Austn. Bird's, pi. 3, fig. 611; (1883),
also Victorian Naturalist (i88S) ; Crowfoot (Metcalfe) : Ibis,
p. 264 (1885) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., app., pi. 21, fig. 5
(1889).

Geoi/ritpliira! Di.sfriliii/iiin. — Seas of North-wi^st Australia (])robably),
Nortlicrn Territory, Queensland and New South Wales ; also most of
the islands in the South Pacific, Caroline Islands, Pelcw Islands, Malayan
Archipelago, Bay of Bengal, Indian Ocean, both sides of Africji. Inacces-
sible Island, near' Tristan da Cunha, Tropic.il Atlantic and Caribbean Sea.

J

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NESTS AA'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 857

Nest. — Constnicted of fresh gathered seaweeds, and placed finnly on
scrub near the sea shore, or upon branches of trees more inland. Nests
in colonies. On Norfolk Island sometimes six or more may be foimd
on one bough, invariably of a white oak ( JjKjuiKirid jiafersuinj.

Egg"- — Clutch, one; roundish oval in shape, or clliptically inclined;
textui'e of shell .somewhat coarse : surface without gloss ; coloiu",
soft or wai'm-white, sparingly blotched with rufous or nisty-brown and
dull pui-pli.sh-grey. the markings being generally confined to the larger
end. Inside lining of the shell, light yellowish-green. Dimensions in
inches: (1) 1-83 x 1-28, (2) 1-78 x 1-34; an average of six: 1-8 x 1-29.

Ohstrftifimiii. — There has been a little conflLsion about the beautiful
and exceedingly tame Wliite-capped Noddy, which enjoys an extensive
r'ange. It has been chieflj- observed on the northern and eastern coasts
of Australia, breeding on Norfolk and Phillip Island, and is closely allied
to M. teiitiirustris of Western Australia. Gray s A. iiw/uiKigeiii/s is now
deemed to be identical with Goidd's original A. hucoc(rpiIh:.i.

I am indebted to Mr. F. M. Nobbs, of Norfolk Island, for a fine series
of eggs of the White-capped Noddy, collected 7th December, 1886, which
were accompanied with the following data : — " Smaller Noddy Tern.
One egg. On ti'ees, some large and half a mile inland; others dwarf
and close to the sea. Nest of seaweed very funnly scciu'ed on branches.
In colonies.'

Breeding months include October, November and December.

The second species of Noddy that Prof. Moseley observed breeding
on St. Paul's Rocks, in mid- Atlantic, during the visit of the " Challenger,"
August, 1873, was probably referable to this species. Prof. Moseley
wi-ites : "The Noddies' nests are made of grg'en seaweed (C'auhrija
claviftra), which grows on the bottom in the bay, and around the rocks,
and which, getting loosened by the surf, floats, and is picked up by the
birds on the surface. The weed is cemented together by the birds' dung,
and the nests, having been used for ages, are now solid masses, with a
circidai- platform at the siminiit, beneath which hangs down a niunber
of tails of di-ied seaweed. The older nests project from the cliffs on
the sheltered side of the rocks, like brackets."

A figure of one of these remarkable brackets is given on page 60 of
'' A Naturalist on the ' Challenger.' ''

655. — Gygis CANDIDA, Gmeliu. — (609)
WHITE TERN.

l-igi(re. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fo!., vol. vii., pi. 30.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 149.

Pre-!'ioui Dcscriltiom of Eggs. — Sharpe : Trans. Roy. See, vol.

clxviii.. p. .;6s (1878) ; Crowfoot (Metcalfe) : Ibis, p. 266 (1885) ;

Campbell : Victorian Naturalist (1888) ; North : Austn. Mus.

Cat., app., pi. 21, fig. 4 (1890).

Geii(jr(ip]ii<:al Di-<tr>hutioii. — Seas of North-west Australia (probably),
Northern TerritoiT, Queensland, and New South Wales; also Central

858 A'ESTS AXD EGGS OF AVSTRAUAN BIRDS.

Pacific in general, Malayan Archipelago, Bay of Bengal, Madagascar,
St. Helena, Ascension, Martin Vas Islets, Trinidad, and Fernando
Noronha.

Xest. — None, merely the bare horizontal Umb of a tree, and, accord-
ing to Saunders, a point of a coral reef.

Eggs. — Clutch, one ; almost a true ellipse in shape ; texture of
shell comparatively fine ; siu'face slightly glossy ; colour, vanes from
stone-grey to stone-yellow, blotched and curiously streaked with umber
and puiplish-grey, also with some dark (nearly black) linear markings
on or about the apex. One singularly beautiful specimen is almost
completely clouded witli purplish-grey, over which are interlacing streaks
of umber, somewhat after the fashion of the eggs of Bower Birds
(Ghlamijduderce). Dimensions in inches (1) 1'84 x r32, (2) 1'78 x 1-\V2,
(3) 1-75 X 1-35, (4) 1-75 x 1-3, (5) 1-74 x 1-32, (6) 1-74 x 1-29. (Plate 25.)

Observations. — Tins lovely snow-white Tern, with plumage strikingly
contrasted by dark bill and eyes, enjoys a somewhat scattered range of
habitat. In Australia it has been observed chiefly in the seas of the
northern and eastern coasts.

The late Mr. Cuning informed Gould that on his visiting EUzabeth
Islands, in the Pacific, he found this, or an allied species,* breeding on
a species of pandanus, its single egg being deposited on the horizontal
branches in a depression, which although slight, was sufficient to retain
it in position despite the high wind and the consequent oscillations to
which it was subjected. Mr. Cuning added that the old birds were
flying about in thousands, like swanns of bees, and that he noticed
several breeding on the same tree ; some of the young birds wore
hatched and covered with down, and being within reach, he took a few
of them in his hand, and after examining replaced them on their
dangerous resting-place, from which it appeared they occasionally fell
down and were destroyed, for he observed several lying dead on the
ground.

Referring to this species, Mr. Saiuidcrs writes (P. Z. S., p. 669,
1876) : " The nesting of the Gygis is peculiar, the single egg of clay-
white, mottled with brown, being placed on a cavity of the branch of
a tree or in a fork of two branches, and on the points of the coral reefs,
anywhei-e, in fact, where it will lie."

Again I have to acknowledge my indebtedness to Mr. F. M. Nobbs,
of Norfolk Island, for a series of ten handsome eggs of this rare and
beautiful Tern, gathered on his salubi'ious island. Mr. Nobbs is well
qualified to give a description of the breeding habits of this Tern (as
well as other local sca-bu-ds), being acquainted with it not only on
Norfolk Island, but on that historic island, Pitcairn — his birthplace, —
where the Tern nests on banyan trees.

The White Tern breeds on Norfolk Island in November, in trees,
chiefly in valleys, at a height of about from twenty to si.xty feet ; the

■ Probably G. miti'orlivitii, Saunders.

!\'ESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

859

single egg being simply deposited on the bare bark, not even in a fork,
aa a nile. Unlike most other Terns, the White one does not breid in
colonies, one or two may be found breeding on adjacent trees, or one
alone in a valley.

As the nesting habits of the Wliite Tern are so remarkable and
interesting, I give further observations by Dr. P. Metealf, also made
on Norfolk Island, as furnished by Dr. W. M. Crowfoot in the " Ibis "
(1885) : " It lays its eggs on trees, and here and there one finds two
or three trees occupied in the same valley. I have seen eleven trees
used in one locality ; but I never saw two eggs on one tree, though
I have seen them on adjoining trees. The egg is laid on the bai'e
branch, sometimes in a slight depression or against a piece of roughened
bark ; one I have seen is in a fork. Generally it lays its egg on an
outstanding branch, and balances it in a tiiily wonderful manner.
There is not a trace of a nest, and often not even of a depression.
One egg only is laid. I have seen it placed on a branch about twenty
feet from the ground, and also at a height of sixty feet or more : tliirty
or forty feet is, perhaps, the average height at which it lays. The bird
always chooses a sheltered situation, generally in a valley, and at a
variable distance from the sea, from three hundred yards to eight
himdi'ed yards in the cases I have seen. Year after year this bird lays
on the same tree, on the same branch, aye, and on the same spot on
the branch. There is one tree where I have seen the old bird sitting
once last year, and twice tliis yeai-, for I got both eggs. The first I took
on the 27tli December, 1883. It was incubated. The second was all
but quite fresh on the 25th January, 1884. In four other trees I have
found eggs on the same spots as I foimd eggs or young birds last year.
These Terns are verj' tame, and in one rase we lifted up the bird to
take the egg. It is interesting to watch the careful way in wiiich the
old bird gets off her egg when going to fly. The young are very comical-
looking little objects.

" I have found the eggs on three different kinds of trees, viz.,
white-oak (Lagunaria patersoiiij, the ironwood (Nnfelcea longifnlia),
and the bloodwood ( Baloghia hicida). How do the eggs and young
birds keep on in windy weather? In November, 1882, I was looking
for a specimen to send to you, and seeing one on a tree, I shot it.
I was sorry to see, when it fell, that a yoimg one was luider it.
However, this year I fovuid another bird sitting on an egg in the same
spot."

86n .VESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Sub-family — Larin^ : Gulls.

656. — Lauus Nov.i; HOLLANDi.i;, Stephens. — (oi)? & 598)
L. gouldi, Bp.
L. lonyirostris, Masters.

SILVER GULL.

Figure.—GonM : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 20.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 235.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 38S (1S65) ; Legge : I'roc. Roy.
Soc, Tasmania, p. 131 (1888) ; Campbell : Victorian
Naturalist (i8Sg), also p. 183 (1894) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat.,
p. 352, pi. 20, fig. 4 {1889) ; Le Souef : Ibis, p. 421 (1895).

Geoymplncal Distrihut ion .—'Ha-as of Australia iu general and Tas-
mania; also New Caledonia.

Nest. — Not so substantially built as that of the Pacific Gull
(Guhianus ixtcificu^), but is somewhat frail, constructed of sea^weed of
various kinds, grass, &c, and measm-ing 6 or 7 inches across by about
1 inch deep. The nests are situated in colonies on some isolated rock
or bold headland.

Eyys. — Clutch, two to three ; inclined to oval in shape ; textme of
shell coai-se ; surface glossy; colour, varies from light gTcyish-greeu to
olive, with markings of lunber or olive-brown and dull-gi-ey. The
maa'kings also vai'y considerably, some being of a. spotted natm-e, others
larger and blotched, while others again are short wavy lines. Dimensions
iu inches of selected pairs : A (1) 2-3 x 1-6, (2) 2-19 x 1-55 ; B (1) 2-18 x
1-43, (2) 2-16 X 1-43 ; C (1) 2-16 x 1-55, (2) 2-15 x 1-53. (Plate 25.)

Observatiim-i. — To breed and rear its offspiing the Silver Gull con-
gregates in great numbers, and resoi^ts to solitary islands or bold, rocky
headlands. I have had many joyful experiences on " rookeries " of this
Sea Gull. My first adveutiu'e was on Cape WoUomai, Phillip Islaaid,
1884, where, on the steep declivities of that frowning headland, our
])arty took many eggs. The nests were situated on ledges of rock,
dangerous to negotiate on account of the dizzy depths beneath, where
the ocean swell rolled in, dashing against the cliff, and extremely dis-
agreeable because of the pungent aroma arising from fresh guano, which
whitewashed the place everywhere. Mutton Bird cggcrs and other
nesters have so disturbed this once favourite locality tiiat only a few
Gulls resort there to breed now.

On the west coast of King Island, November, 1887, large-.sized
" rookeries " were observed on Seagull Rock, in Currie Harbour, and on
a large, prominent rock near the mouth of the Etlerick River. Many
of the eggs were far incubated. However, wc obtained a few fresh

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 80 1

clutches, while some feathered youug were captiu-ed. November, 1893,
we visited another colony of breeding Silver Gulls on the Samphire
River reef, Franklin Soimd, Funioaux Group. Twenty-one nests were
placed on the ground, amongst short herbage, at various distances from
each other, the nearest being about tlurty-four or thirty-five inches
apart. It may be worth while noting here that on the outskirts of this
rookery we foiuid a pair of Oyster Catcher's eggs.

Gould found a colony of Silver Gulls on Great Actaeon Island,
D'Entrecasteaux Cliannel, Tasmania, when he visited that place in 1838.
Doubtless, a similar colony still exists there, for more recently (1887)
Colonel Legge noted one on the south point. But it is strange that
such a careful observer as Gould should state that this Gull lays four
or five eggs. On no occasion have I obsei-\'ed more than three to a
nest.

On Albatross Rock, off the north-west corner of Tasmania, Messrs.
Dudley Le Souef and H. P. C. Ashworth, November, 1894, observed a
fair-sized company of these Gu.lls, breeding on a shelving rocky head-
land, where short tussock grass gi'ew in patches in clefts of the rocks.
The nests were placed amongst this vegetation, each containing two
or three eggs or young, chiefly the former number. As the flock of old
birds was hovering over the spot in a soUcitous manner, Mr. Le Souef
took an excellent photograph, which he has kindly permitted me to
reproduce.

Tlie pretty Silver Gull is a rare thief. I recollect when on the
AbroDios Islands, Western Au.straUa, witnessing their plundering the
Noddy Terns of theu' eggs (by the way, the very occupation I was
engaged in myself), especially if nearly incubated. Tlie Gulls also rob
these peaceful bu'ds after the Noddies have returned from a fishing
cruise, when the contents of their stomachs are just " dished " on the
edge of the nest for their mates or young.

The breeding season for the Silver Gull includes the months from
September to December.

Silver Sea Gulls always arrest attention with their comely forms and
buoyant flight, and by being associated with our inter-colonial sea
voyages. Tliey will hover right over the taffrail of the travelhng
steamer m hopes of some morsels being tlu-own overboard. Presently
the watcher observes a noisy bunch of graceful white forms, varied with
black splashed pinions, and extended blood-red legs, left astern, dis-
puting for a half-eaten fowl from the saloon table that an imthrifty
steward has heaved over the side.

The dimensions in inches of the Silver Gull are — total length, 17i
inches; wing, 13 inches; tail, 5 inches; bill. If inches. The sexes axe
exactly alike.

Gulls are lovers of the sea shore rather than of open ocean. Not
only does the beautiful Silver Gull love the sea shores, but it also
ventures far up rivers, and sometimes reaches lakes in the interioi-. In
winter, generally when stonny weather prevails in the bay and outside
the Heads, hundi-eds of the silverj'-plumaged Giills make their way up
the Yan-a amongst the shipping, wi-angUng in knots here and there
over refuse floating down stream. At the wharf I watch a person

852 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Gull-fishing. A baited hook attached to a line is thrown out and
allowed to dfift. Soon the birds catch sight of the tempting morsel,
one after another snapping at it, till at length the hook catches in a
horny, red bill, and, with protesting screams and fluttering pinions,
the bird is drawn ashore, bagged, and sold in the market for cightecn-
pence. Thenceforth it is destined to eat snails in some gentleman's
garden, instead of hawking for fish over the sea, or for worms in oozy
sand-flats. Very tractable pets the birds become. Many years I kept
one, which rejoiced in the name of " Gullie."

657. — Gabianus pacificus, Latham. — (596)
PACIFIC GULL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Austrnlia, fol., vol. vii., pi. iq.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 297.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. -586 (186^) ; Legge : Proc. Roy. Soc,
Tasmania, p. 132 (188S) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 351, pi.
20, fig. 1 (iS8c)); Campbell: Victorian Naturalist, p. 183
(1894); Le Souef : Ibis, p. 421 (iSqO-

Gcogriipliiral Di^trihufioii. — Seas of Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, South and West AustraUa, and Tasmania.

Jfest. — Open, somewhat deep, warmly constructed of grass (roots
and all) and flowering stalks of plants or a thick ply of dead pig-face weed
(Mesemhrianthemum), sheltered by rocks, tussock grass, saltbush, &c.
Usually situated on islets. Dimensions over all, 10 to 11 inches; inside
depth, 3 to 4 inches.

Eg(js. — Clutch, two to three ; oval in shape ; texture of shell coarse ;
siu-face slightly glossy ; coloiu-, light olive-brown, moderately l)ut boldly
blotched with rich umber and dull grey. Dimensions in inches of
l)roper clutches: A (1) 3-08 x 2-09, (2) 3-05 x 2-03, (3) 2-96 x 2-0 ;
B (1) 2-98 X 2-03, (2) 2-97 x 2-0, (3) 2-95 x 2-01. (Plate 25.)

Ohservations. — This groat Gull frequents the sea shores of Australia
(except, perhaps, the northern coast) and Tasmania.

The maturely grown Pacific Gull is always attractive, whether seen
circling hawklike on high, or gracefully posed on a pinnacle of jagged
rock. In adults there is no difference of plumage in the sexes, both
being snowy-white, with the upper surface of the wings and back black,
bills yellowish, blood-coloured at the tip, and eyes most beautiful pearly-
white. Total length, about 25 inches; wing, 161 inches; tail, 61
inches; bill, 21 inches.

The young are not so handsome for the first three vears, remaining
in a dull brownish dross of mottled appearance. Tliis I had an oppor-
tunity of verifying. During the visit of Mr. Alexander Borthwick,

C\-«

NESTS A.\'D EGGS OV AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 863

jimr., aud myself to Phillip Island, Wcsteniport, November, 1884, we
secured a paii- of yoimg Pacific Gulls. One survived, which Mr.
Borthwick c:irefully watched through its seasonal moults till 1888, when
it donned full plumage. It tirnied out a fierce, as well as a fine
creature, and would " go " for anything except its master, leaving un-
mistakable evidences of its formidable neb on any such soft material
as luiprotected flesh. I am not quite siu'e wliether I imderstood
Mr. Borthwick to say that this bird swallowed holus bolus a clutch of
ducklings, but, judging from tlii^ atta-cks made by these Gulls in a state
of natui'e on Petrels aud other defenceless birds, it was quite capable of
such, aji exploit. Mr. Borthwiek's bird, being reared in a Scotch
family, readily took to porridge, and appeared remarkably fond of it.

During the several expeditions of the Field Naturalists' Club of
Victoria to Bass Strait, we had ample opportimities of examining the
breeding places of the Pacific Gidl. One, on the inner islet of New
Yeai-'s Islands, off King Island, was a good nurseiy — the nests not being
placed too close to each other, but at intervals, sheltered with salt-bush.
On North-east Island, Kent Group, we found several nests on ledges of
rock adorned with pig-face weed (M ei^emhrianthemum ). bearing large
white flowers. One so situated made a perfect photographic pictiire
(see illustration). Again, on islets in Franklin Sound, Fumeaux
Group, many nests of Pacific Gulls were observed, which were warmlv
constructed of grass (roots and all) and wild flowers, placed on the
ground, and sheltered by tussock grass, saltbush, or points of jutting
rock.

The birds frequently betray their nests bv flving overhead, and
uttering their hoarse, bark-like c^lls. 'Tis music to a naturalist's ear
to hear, amid the howlinsr of the wind, their calls in such wild places.

All our trips to the islands occurred during the month of November,
and judging by circumstances, the laying season for the Pacific Gulls
commences about the middle of October, and probably continues into
December. In Western Australia the Pacific Gull commences to lay
in September.

The young in down arc dull or dirty white, dappled with black.

FAMILY— STERCORARTID.gi; : SKUAS.

658. — Mf.galestrts ANTARCTICA, Lcssou. (,599)

SKUA.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol, vii., pi. 21.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mu^!., vol. xxv., p. 319.

Previow T>e criptions of Eggs. — Layard and Hutton : Travers : Trans.
New Zealand Inst., vol. v., p. 218 (1873) ; Potts : Trans. New
Zealand Inst., vol. vi., p.' 153 (1874I : Saunders: Trans, Rov.
Snc. V0I cxi'iii,. p 163 fi'SyS) ; Kidder and Coues : Smith-
sonian Miscell. Coll.. vol. xiii.. Art 3 (1878): Campbell:
Southern Science Record (1883I ; Bnller : Birds of New
Zealand, vol. ii., p. 65 (1888).

Gengrnphirnl Dhtrihifinv . — Seas of Queensland, New South Wales.
Victoria. South and West Australia, and Tasmania ; also New Zealand

8()4

NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTK ALLAN BIRDS.

and the Southern Ocean in general, ranging as far north as Madagascar
and the Comoro Islands.

Xcst. — A depression in the moss or gi'ass, lined sparingly with the
same material, and iisnally situated in a diy place. Dimensions over all,
about 1 2 inches by 3 inches deep inside.

Egi/s. — Clutch, two usually ; pointed oval or pyriform in shape;
textiu'e of shell exceedingly coarse, especially at the smaller end ; siu-face
.sUghtly glossy ; colour, one &gg of a pair dull olive-green, the other olive-
brown, both sparingly blotched (sometimes the markings being more
nmnerous on the apex) with dark oUve-brown and dull brown or gi-eyish-
black. Resemble those of the Pacific Gull ( drihiduua iHirifinia), but, as a
rule, slightly smaller and not so munerou.sly marked. Dimensions in
inches of odd examples : (1) 2-9 x 20, (2) 2-9 x 1-94 ; of a proper clutch
from Macquarie Island: (olive-green egg) 2-97 x 2-12, (olive-brown egg)
2-85 X 2-16. (Plate 25.)

Observations. — This dusky and daring sea-pirate frequents chieflv
the bleak islands in the higher latitudes washed by the great Southern
Ocean. Professor Hutton states it is rare north of latitude 45 °
Its habitat also includes Australian seas up to temperate waters.

The Southern Skua, commonly called Sea Hen by sailors, is very
closely alUed to the gi-eat European Skua, which is said to be fast
becoming exterminated, but from which it differs in its somewhat
larger size and darker colour.

The Skua may be distinguished from other ocean fliers by the more
flapping motion of its roundish wings and laboured mode of flight.

Gould observed the Skua abundant particularly in Storm Bay, at
the mouth of the Derwent River, Tasmania.

Sir Walter Buller gives a little interesting New Zealand incident
regarding the Skua. He was travelling by coach on the west coast,
when a bird, evidently worn out with fatigue, was rising evei-y time
the coach was within a few yards of it, instead of making a circuit and
getting behind the pur.suing coach.

" But the Skua ashore," writes Sir Walter Buller, " was evidently
out of his latitude ; and this was made more apparent by the manner
in which the Sea Gulls (of both species), his hereditary victims at sea,
pursued him in the air and buffeted him. As is well known, this bird
usually subsists by plunder, pursuing the Gulls and compelling them to
disgorge their food. Here, however, the conditions were changed, as
I myself had an opportunity of observing fi-om the box-scat. The
Skua had alighted in a shallow beach-stream and wa.s ducking its body
in the water, when a fine old Hawk (Circus gouldi), with hoary white
plumage, suddenly appeared from the sand-hills and swooped down upon
the intruder. The Skua., without making any show of resistance,
instantlv disgorged from his crop the entire body of a Diving Petrel
(Pch'rnnindes urinnfrir). The Hawk, balancing himself for a moment,
with outspread tail, dropped his long talons into (he stream and
clutched up his prey without wetting a feather of his plumage, and
then disappeared with it among the sand-hills, while the terrified Skua

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 865

hurried off, only to be piu'sued again by the clamorous Sea Gulls.
Thus we have examples of retributive justice even among birds."

Mr. H. H. Travers states he only found the 8ca Hen, or Skua, in
certain places on Pitt Island (one of the Chatham Group), and on a.
small islet about two miles from that island. It commences to lay in the
beginning of December. Two eggs are laid, which are scarcely distinguish-
able from those of Larui dominiconiis. Whilst attempting to take
eggs the birds attacked him most savagely. Both parents take part
in the task of incubation. Round the nest remains of several small
sea-birds, chiefly Prions, were found. It appears the Skua is nocturnal
as well as diurnal in its habits. During the day Mr. Travers saw the
birds usually perched in sunny places on the highest chffs, now and
then taking short flights, but not hunting for food. But whilst on
Mangare Island he heard the Skua constantly during the night,
swooping on the small bii-ds which came on shore to roost. On exam-
ining the stomachs of many Skuas, they were always found to contain
Prions, usually swallowed whole.

Mr. George Comer, the collector, writing to Mr. G. E. Verrill,
regarding the Southern Skua, states ; " These birds are the same at all
the islands in the South Atlantic. At Gough Island they commence
laying the middle of September. They lay two eggs. If these are
taken they will lay two more. When the Penguins lay, the Sea Hens
come ashore in large numbers and get their living by robbing the nests
and catching the yoimg Penguins. They also kill young Albatrosses
and aU small birds they can catch. The Sea Hen as it grows old
becomes light-brown." While Mr. Comer was on Gough Island he
killed about three hundred of these birds for their feathers.

Mr. J. E. Bm-ton infonns me that the Skua airives on Macquarie
Island about the middle of August, and that its usual breeding months
are October, November, and December, In a pair of eggs one
invariably differed from the other in coloiu-ing. Ejected feathers and
bones in small bundles, a few inches in length by about half-an-inch in
thickness of victims devoured may be observed about the nest or roosting
place.

On Kerguelen, diu-ing the American Transit of Venus Expedition,
1874-5, four nests found contained only two eggs each. First was
found 17th November.

I shall continue my remarks on the Southern Skua by quoting the
pleasantly-wi-itten statements of Rev. A. E. Eaton, who accompanied
the British Transit of Venus Expedition.

■' Every marsh near Royal Sound used to have its pair of Skuas.
Many were destroyed witliin a radius of four miles from the ships ;
and before the expedition sailed from the island it was impossible to
walk far without coming across dead bodies of the poor creatures. Tlie
cause of this useless slaughter was the menacing aspect of the birds,
who swoop with fierce impetuosity directly towards the face of any one
approaching their domain, rising just in time to clear his head, and
uttering short despairing cries. They did not feign to be crippled
quite so much as the Skuas of Spitzbergen, but preferred intimidation
55

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BINDS.

as a means of averting danger near their nest. When tliey thought
they had succeeded in making the enemy retreat, they celebrated their
triumph by standing face to face upon the gi-ound, with their wings
extended vertically so as almost to meet above their back, wliilst both
loudly chanted a psean, consisting of a dozen notes or so dehvered in
the tones of a Carrion Ci'ow. In October they used to croak now and
then during their flight, and this croak, which was discontinued in the
breeding season, was very like the lower croak of a Raven. Indeed, it
was at first difficvdt to reassure one's self that they were not a species
of Corone as they circled in the air far orfl', and the blue-jackets used to
call them ' Black Crows ' for some time, but before long the designation
' Molly Hawks ' came to be applied to them. This change of name took
place at the commencement of Petrel digging. If Blue Petrels were
turned loose in the daytime, they were almost invariably chased by
Skuas, and killed on the wing before they had flo^vn half-a-mile. Petrels
of one sort or another seem to constitute the staple diet of these Skuas.
They hunt for them in the evening when it is Ijecoming dusk, flying
rapidly along the hillside close to the ground, ready to pounce upon
any that they may see emerging from the mouth of their burrows.
Again in the early morning they are upon the wing to waylay Petrels
returning late from sea. Nor are they idle during the rest of the day.
I have mentioned their fondness for eggs in my paper in the
' Proceedings.'

" The nest is built amongst AzoreUa, where the ground is dry and
slightl}' raised. It consists of a hollow scraped out of the soil, lined
with dead tufts of Fcatuca ererta. The eggs are two in number and
do not vary much in colour. The statements in Captain Button's
paper on ' Birds Inhabiting the Southern Ocean ' (Quart. Jovu-. Sc,
1866, vi., 77), that the Kerguelen Skua breeds on flats ajnong grass
two feet high, and lays three eggs, and that the young are dark-brown,
spotted with white, do not accord with our observations. Tlie young
are dark-brown, without any pale spntx whatever. The ordinary food-
call of the nestlings is rather plaintive and tremulous ; they also quack
Ukc Mallards.

" The old Skuas were much puzzled when they saw rabbits come
out of the Petrel's holes. They hovered for a long time over their
heads, and at length used to stand beside the mouths of the biu^rows
waiting for the young ones to creep forth, just as if they were watching
for Petrels. It is doubtful if they will succeed in ridding the island
of these mischievous vonnin, althousrh the voung birds reared bv mo
fed readily upon rabbits prociu-cd by a sUng.

" Twenty or thirty adult Skuas used to assemble eveiy afternoon
upon a small sheltered lake near Swain's Harbour, where they washed
and basked."

To show how lively the old Skuas make things for the egg hunter,
I shall quote from Dr. Kidder's experience on Kerguelen. He writes:
" Seeing a Skua fly by the house one day (7lh December, 1874), ap-
parently going somewhere in a hurry, I therefore snatched up my
revolver (no gun being at hand) and followed him. He was going to
join the female on her nest, as I suspected, and when I approaciicd

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTKAIJAN BIRDS.

867

both attacked me as usual. I succeeded iu killing the male, but
emptied my revolver at the female without success, and was kept
standing for cei-tainly twenty minutes, pelting the enraged bird with
stones as she swooped down at my head, mtli the two eggs in plain
sight, but not daring to pick them up. A lucky throw finally disabled
her, and I secured the eggs, which were veiy much paler than those
gathered theretofore, and quite fresh." Eggs were first found by
Dr. Kidder's party on the 17th November.

659. — Stercor.\rius pom.\torhinus, Teniniinck.
POMARINE SKUA.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Great Britain, vol. v., pi. 79.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 322.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Various.

Geographical Distrihution. — Northern Tenitory (probably), and
North Queensland (Cape York) ; also as far south as the coasts of South
Africa and South America, ranging up to the Arctic regions north of
70 deg., chiefly on the Tundras diu'ing breeding season.

Nest. — A mere depression in the ground in moss-covered moorland
(Butler).

Eggs. — Clutch, two usually; colour, deep olive-drab, sparingly
spotted with slate and light and dark raw umber marldngs and black
dots, cliiefly at the larger end, where they become confluent.
Dimensions in inches : 2-25 x 1-7 (Brewer).

Observations. — Tliis other Arctic species of Skua, after breeding
chiefly on the Tundras, travels southward to winter, occasionally
touching the northern shores of Australia.

The beautiful plate of two pairs of Pomarine Skuas' eggs taken on
the Yenisei, and figiu-ed in " The Ibis," pi. xi. (1900), under the name
of Mr. C. Boyce Hill, show that the eggs of each pair are differently
colom-ed one from the other, like those I mentioned in the case of the
Southern Skua.

660. — Stercorarius crepid.a.tus, Banks.
RICHARDSON SKUA.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Great Britain, vol. v., pi. So.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 327.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Various.

Geographical Distrihvtio/i. — Seas of New South Wales, Victoria,
and Tasmania ; also New Zealand and other localities in the Southern

NESTS AA'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Hemisphei-e, and ranging up to the ciicumpolar and sub-Arctic regions
to breed.

Jest. — Constructed rather carelessly of grass, moss and fragments
of heather, and situated on the gi-ound amongst heather in marshy or
uncultivated moorland (Butler).

Eggs. — Clutch, two ; inclined to be pynionu, or much pointed at one
end ; texture of shell somewhat coarse ; .surface slightly glossy ; colour,
dull or dark-olive, blotched and spotted, more particularly about the
larger end, with umber and dull gi'cyish-black. Dimensions of a proper
pair in inches (1) 2-34 x 1-6, (2) 2-27 x 1'53.

Observations. — This far-northern bird, in migrating southward to
winter, amongst other localities reaches Australia and . New Zealand
waters.

The first recorded example for New Zealand was an adult bird shot
by Sir- W. Buller on tlie beach at Horowhemia, in the district of
Wellington, 30th April, 1864, and presented to the Colonial Museiun.

In 1883 I placed on record this species as new for Australia. When
returning from Tasmania, steaming up Port Phillip Bay, in October of
that year, I observed numbers of Richardson Skuas hovering over our
wake and near the vessel. Several occasions since, but always in
siunmer, I have noticed these bii'ds in the bay. On the 26th November,
1892, when returning home from Portarlington, ten or twelve of these
dusky-coloured birds were flying around the steamer. As they passed
overhead one could see the dark chests and speckled under parts, while
the two long narrow plumes or central tail-feathers were vei-y con-
spicuous. Some of these birds dipped into the water in the wake of the
vessel after the manner of Gulls.

In the Tasman Sea, dui-ing a passage from Sydney to Hobart, I often
noticed birds which I took to be this Skua, therefore they appear to ue
more prevalent in Australian watei's than is generally believed.

Like its great and ferocious cousin — the Southern Skua — it is
notorious for robbing other sea birds of their food.

Henry Seebohm thvis records in " Siberia in Europe " the finding of
a nest : " Our most interesting find, however, was the nest, with two
eggs, of the Richardson Skua, placed, on a tussock of mossy giound. It
was lined witli some reindeer moss and leaves of the surrounding plants.
The devices of the birds to deceive us, as we came near it, attracted
our attention and revealed its vicinity. Tliey often alighted within
fifteen yards of us, shammed lameness and sickness, I'eeled from side to
side as if mortally wounded, then when we persisted in oiu- onward
course they flew boldly at us, and stopped repeatedly.'

AESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ORDER— TUBINARE5 : rUBE = NOSED
SWIMMERS.

FAMILY— PROCELLAKllD.E : PETRELS.

Sub-family — OcEANiTiN^ai : Storm Tethels.

80cj

661. OCEANITES OCEANICUS, Kulll. (QA.&)

YELLOW-WEBBED STORM PETREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 65.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 35S.

Previous Deccriplions 0/ Eggs. — Saunders; Trans. Koy. Soc, vol.
clxviii., p. 164 (1878) ; Hall : Ibis, p. 20 (1900;.

Geographical Distribution. — Seas of South Queensland, New South
Wales, Victoria, South and West Australia and Tasmania; also New
Zealand, from the Ice Barrier in the Antarctic Ocean to the Atlantic as
far north as the British Isles and the coast of Labrador, and the Indian
Ocean up to the Ai'abian Sea.

Nest. — A shallow indentation beneath a stone or witliin a crevice,
hned with twigs ( AzoreUa). Dimensions over all, 5 to 7 inches by 5
inches in depth (Hall).

Kij'js. — Clutch, one ; almost an ellipse in shape ; texture of shell,
thin and fine ; surface without gloss ; colour, white, witli minute purplish-
brown spots, usually in the foi-m of a zone roimd the upper quarter.
Dimensions in inches of specimens from Kerguolen Islands : (1) 1-29 x -91,
(2) 1-28 X -88, (3) 1-25 X -9. These eggs are probably the smallest of
all Petrels'.

Observations. — This little tenant of the ocean is chiefly found in the
Southern seas, down to the ice baiTier ; but is also found in the northern
hemisphere, especially in the Atlantic.

According to Gould, the Yellow-webbed Storm Petrel is one of the
most abundant of its tribe inliabiting Australiaai seas. He observed it
in gi-eat numbers within sight of the Tasmanian shores, and sliot several
specimens during his passage from Hobart to Sydney, April, 1839.

Concerning this gi-aceful Uttle bird on land (Kergueien's), the
Rev. A. E. Eaton wrote : " At length ( ? end of November), when we
went to Tliiunb Peak, their mode of nesting was discovered. Carefidly
watching, with Lieut. GoO-dridge, R.N., the birds flying to and fro about
the rocks, we observed that they occasionally disappeared into the
crevices amongst the piles of loose stones, and crept under loose masses
of rock. Having meanwhile ascertained their call, we were able to

$70 NHSTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

listen attentively to detect tlie exact positions of several of these hidden
birds. They were easily caught when the stones were rolled aside ; but
they were in couples, merely preparing for laying, and therefore we did not
find any eggs. On cm- way back to Observatory Bay, after the transit,
we called at the Amei-ican Station, and were informed by Dr. Kidder
that he had observed this Petrel on the shore near MoUoy Point.

" Having foimd numbers of their nesting places, I will describe my
method of searching for them. Wlienever there was a calm night, I
used to walk with a darkened bull's-eye lantern towards some rocky
hill side, such as the Petrels would be likely to frequent. It was best
to shut off the hght and keep it concealed, using it only in dangei-ous
places where falls would attend with injury, and progi-ess in the dark
was hardly possible, lest the birds, seeing it, shoidd be silenced. On
an-iving at the gi-ound selected, it was probable that Storm Petrels would
be heard in various directions, some on the wing, others on their nests,
soimding their calls at intervals of from two to five minutes. Those on
nests could be distinguished from others flying by their cries pi-oceeding
from fixed positions. Having settled which of the birds shoiUd be
searched after, a cautious advance had to be made in her direction, two
or three steps at a time, when she was in full ciy. As soon as she
ceased, an abrupt halt was imperative, and a pause of some minutes
miglit ensue before she re-commenced her ciy and permitted another
slight advance to be effected. In the com-se of this gradual approach
the position of the bird might be ascertained approximately ; but it had
to b© determined precisely, and to learn exactly where she had to be
stalked in the dark noiselessly. No gleam could be pennitted to escape
from tlie lantern. Loose stones and falls over rocks — to avoid them it
was sometimes necessary to dispense with slippers, and feel one's way
in stockings only, for should a Petrel be alaniied once with the noise or
with the light, she would probably remain silent a considerable time.
Wlien the stone beneath which the bird was domiciled was gained at
last, redoubled care had to be exercised. By stooping down and listening
very attentively her position could be accm-ately ascertained. The
lantern was suddenly tvu'ned upon her before she had time to' creep out
of sight, and her egg could be seciu'ed by tlie hand, or with a spoon tied
on to a stick. Sometimes I worked without lantem, and marked the
positions of the nests witli piles of stones, so that they might bo re-visited
by day. Several eggs were obtained in Febiniary from nests I had thus
marked early in the previous month. The first egg taken by us was
found by a retriever, on the 22nd January, on an island in Swain's Bay."

Tlie eggs I obtained of tlic Yellow-webbed Storm Petrel were col-
lected by Mr. Robert Hall, who was most kindly permitted to
accompany Mr. Hans Cundersen, consul for Norway and Sweden,
Melbourne, on his oiling enterprise in the brig " Edward," to Kerguelen.
Between the 3rd and 14th Febniaiy, 1898, Mr. Hall found ten eggs,
some fresh, others much incubated, and seven nestlings. The latter
were clothed in vmiform gi'cyish down, with bill black, legs bluish, tinged
with faint yellow, and webs Ijright yellow.

It is reported that the Antarctica Ex])e<Htioii under ]\lr. liori'hgrevink,
found this feathered ocean waif breeding in the cliffs of Victoria Land ;
if so, this is the furthest south nesting note for any Australian bird.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 8/1

662. G.u:i!iii)iA NKREis, Goiild. — (645)
GREY-BACKED STORM PETREL.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 64.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 361.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Kidder and Coues : Smithsonian
Miscell. Coll., vol. xiii., Art3 (1878); Bnller : Birds of New
Zealand, vol. n., p. 247 (1888).

Geographical Distribution. — -Seas of South Queensland, New South
Wales, Victoria, Soutli and West Austraha and Ta.smaiiia ; also 'New
Zealand and the Southern Ocean in general.

A^est. — A buiTow, resembling a rat hole, about 1^ feet in length
(Seymoiu-) ; or under a tuft of grass or other herbage near the sea.
Sometimes the bird digs a small btuTow, of teuer the egg is simply covered
by overhanging grass stems, in low laud (Kidder and Coues).

Eygs. — Clutch, one; elliptical in shape; textm-e of shell compara-
tively fine ; siu-face minutely pitted and sometimes slightlv glossy ; colom',
white, with a finely freckled patch of brown and faint pur[)Iisli-brown
on or round the ape.K. Dimensions in inches: (1) 1-4 x 1-0,
(2) 1-39 X 1-07.

Observations. — The habitat of the little Grey-backed Storm Petrel,
so far as is known, is limited to the Southern Ocean, and, of course,
occurring in Australian and New Zealand sea.s.

Diu'ing a calm in the passage of Gould from Hobart to Sydney, May,
1839, he obtained his first (four) examples of this little ocean wanderer.
That great ornithologist enthusiastically writes : " The Procellaria
nereis is a species readily distinguishable from its congeners by the total
absence of any white mark on the rump, the want of which first drew my
attention and induced me to suspect it, as it subsequently proved to be,
a different species from any I had before seen ; my readers will therefore
easily imagine with what pleasiu'e I descended the ship's side and sallied
forth in a little ' dingy ' to procure specimens. Tliis is not the only
instance in which science has been benefited through the kindness of the
captains I have sailed with, in allowing me the use of a boat whenever
the weather permitted such a favoiu' to be granted me without retarding
the progress of the ship. Nearly thirty species of oceanic birds were
obtained in this way during my voyage to Australia ; whence some idea
may bo formed of the nimibers encoimtered in the open sea, and of the
employment the natm-alist may find during a voyage round the globe."

The eggs of this Stormy Petrel I described in 1883 were referable
10 the White-faced variety. However, authenticated eggs of the rarer
Grey-backed bird I received from Mr. J. Percy Seymour, who collected
them on Tomahawk Island, Otago Peninsula, New Zealand ; they were
dated 20th November, 1886. I have mislaid my data of them ; but

8^2 N£STS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Mr. Seymom-, in communicating with Sir Walter Buller, sent tlie follow-
ing notes to him : " I foiuid a number of nests of this Petrel ou Tomahawk
Island, Otago Peninsula, on the IStli Januaiy. The birds had been
previously disturbed and their eggs taken, and they were, therefore,
unusually late in breeding, for I have, on another occasion, obtained
fresh eggs as early as November 23rd. The nests were situated in
biu-rows, 18 inches deep, and resembling rat-holes. Five nests contained
one yovmg bird each, and the other five one egg each, on which the
female was sitting in eveiy case. I was able to presei-ve only two of
the eggs, as in the others the young bird inside broke the shell before
I reached home."

I hardly agree \nih Mr. Seymour that taking eggs nearly incubated
in the middle of January was late. They would be freshly laid about
the 20th to 23rd November, the usual date for many Petrels.

The Biitish Traoasit of Venus Expedition did not appear to find any
of these eggs on Kerguelen. The first birds were found by the American
party on the 28th and 29tli October (1874), and were dug out by dogs
from small burrows under climips of Azorella. A pair, captured on a
later date, was found under a. tussock, not two yards above high-water
mark, on the beach, imder a high cliff. Eggs were first found 12th
December, under chmips of grass, &c., which seemed to afford sufficient
protection to the nests in a bit of swamjsy lowland near the sea. The
male only was observed sitting.

683. — Pelagodroma marina, Latham. — (6-lUj
Prorelhi7-ia frtijdta, Linnseus.

WHITE-FACED STORM PETREL.

Figure. — GoiiH : Birds of Auslralia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 6i.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. .\xv., p. 362.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — dould : Birds of Australia (1848)

also Handbook, 'vol. ii., p. 482 (1865) ; North : Austn. .Mus.

Cat., p. 362 (1S89) ; Campbell : Victorian Naturalist (1894) ;

Baring and Grant : Zoologist, p. 412 (1895).

Getigraphical Distrihiitioii. — Seas of New South Wales, Victoria,
Soath and West Australia and Tasmania ; also New Zealand and Southern
Hemisphere in general, northwards to the Canary Islands and British
Isles (accidental) and the coast of Massachusetts.

Xfxt. — A rat-like buiTow, extending undergi'ound for about U feet,
on a rock or islet covered with short herbage.

Efjt/s. — Clutch, one; elliptical in .shape; texture of shell com-
paratively fine ; surface occasionally has a faint trace of gloss ; coloiu-,
pure white, but about fifty per cent, have numerous fine brownish freckles
about the apex. Dimensions in inches: (1) 1-45 x 1-05, (2) 1-45 x 1-0,
(3) 1-41 X 1-08. (4) 1-37 x 1-02. (r.) 1-35 y 1-04.

NESTS AND EGGS OT AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 873

Observations. — This lovely and delicate Storm Petrel frequents
chiefly the Soiithern Ocean, but has been found northwards beyond the
Equator.

Gilbert discovered it breeding on the small islands (probably the
St. Aloiu-an), off Cape Leeuwin, in December (1840), where he prociu'ed
numbers of its eggs. He also met it on a small island about thiee miles
south of East Wallaby Island (Abrolhos), m January, wlien young were
in the buiTOws.

During my own visit (1889) to Abrolhos, I found yoimg on another
tiny islet known as Beacon Rock, adjoining Rat Island to the south, at
low tide. It was then 15th December, and the young appeai-ed about
ten or foiu-t.eeu days old. They were clothed in long, bluish-grey down,
with dark, naked head and bill ; feet also were dark-coloiu'ed, with webs
yellowish-white. After death an amber-coloured oil exuded freely from
the beak.

Diu-ing the expedition of the Field Natm-alists' Club to the t'm-neaux
Group, Bass Strait, we found the White-faced Stoma Petrel breeding
on Isabella Rock. On the ISth November, with genuine delight, we
invaded the rookery of this dear little creature. It was indeed a
romantic situation — an islet in a sheltered sound, gi-assed with tussock,
brightened with crops of wild, white flowers, and sm-rounded with great
outcropping gi-anite rocks, lichen-covered, like sentinels guarding the
place. From imder the grass, in the gi-ound, out of the ratlike burrows,
which extend the length of one's foreann, we withdi"ew the soft and
delicately-plumaged little birds, each with a single egg; and remarkable
as it may appear (especially to those who believe they possess a theoiy
on the coloiu'ation of eggs), about four in every ten of the eggs were
slightly spotted at one end, the egg usually being pure white.

Tliese Petrels are also found on other isolated islets in Bass Strait,
notably Petrel Island (so called on accoimt of these birds being found
thereon). Three Hmnmock Island, Penguin and Stack Islands of the
Hunter Group, fiom whence I received eggs, accompanied by a skin,
from Mr. E. D. Atkinson, season 1888.

Formerly they used to breed on Mud Island, Port Phillip Bay, but
the erection of forts upon the place drove the little^ birds away. I had
eggs from Mud Island, kindly collected by Mr. G. Watson, then master
of the ketch " Dagmar," November, 1882.

It was somewhat remarkable that the Honourable Cecil Baring and
Mr. W. R. Ogilvie-Grant found this little ocean wanderer breeding on
one of the Savage Islands in the North Atlantic. On the afternoon
of the arrival of these gentlemen, they foimd an egg in what they at
first mistook for a rabbit biuTow. This, however, opened their eyes,
and subsequently they found large colonies of the White-faced Stomi
Petrel breeding on the flat top of the island in buiTOws dug out of the
sandy gi-omid, and partly concealed by the close gi'owing ice-plant or
pig-face weed. The birds had just begiui to sit, and it was ascertained
that both sexes took part in the incubation. By the end of April the
eggs appeared half hatched. Many of the bii-ds and their eggs were
formd destroyed, apparently by mice.

8~^ NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

664. — Uymodkoma melanogastek, Gould. — (647)

BLACK-BELLIED STORM PETREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 62.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 364.

Geoyrapliical Distribution. — Seas of Australia and Tasmauia ; also
Nevi^ Zealand and the Southern Ocean in general, northward to the Bay
of Bengal and to the Tropie'of Cancer in tlie Atlantic.

Ned and Eyys. — Undescribed.

Observations. — This dusky-coloured (save its snow-white upper tail
coverts and flanks) small Petrel is a flier cliiefly of the Southern Ocean,
but ventnres up to the Tropics.

Gould's first acquaintance with this sjjecies commenced on the 12th
August, 1839, .when, off Cape AguLhas, on his voyage to Australia; from
that date it was almost daily observed during the voyage across the
South Indian Ocean until he anived at Tasmania, 19th September.
Its niunbers were foimd to gradually increase from the neighboiu-hood
of the islands of St. Paul and Amsterdam to the termination of the
voyage. In March, 1840, diu-ing his passage home, he agaizi met with
the Black-beUied Storm Petrel in great niunbers between the eastern
coast of Australia and New Zealand.

On Kerguelen, and referring to I'roccUaria grallaria (melanogaster),
the Rev. A. E. Eaton states: — "Occasionally late in the even-
ing and dm-ing the night, a piercingly slu-ill piping note, repeated singly,
at intervals of fom- to six seconds, used to be heaa'd on the hills about
Observatory Bay. Generally the soiuid changed its direction, shoiwing
that the bird which uttered it was flying. This call might be imitated
on a piccolo fife in the key of G or F. In its complete form it consists
of a series of single notes, separated by pauses of four seconds or more,
followed by a jerky .succession of notes m the same tone.

" One night the sound was traced to a crevice in a chff beneath an
immovable rock. The place was marked by a pile of stones, and visited
early the next morning. While efiorts were being made to remove the
rock, the bird within the recess became alarmed, and uttered a cry
somewhat like that of a Kestrel Hawk in its tone, but not neiu'ly so loud.
On another night the soimd was followed up to a hill. Even' now and
then the bird ceased piping, but it re-commcnccd whenever the call was
imitated with the lips. Its nook was therefore easily dLscovered ; it was
in a terrace on the hill-side, under ai piece of rock. The stone was pulled
away, the nesting place laid open, and two birds in it disclosed, of wliich
one escaped. The female was caught, and she proved, to be an 0. melano-
gaster. A third pair was caught in a slope of broken rocks near the top
of the hill, a few nights later, in a similai- way. Their nesting place liad
been used before, as there were fragments of an old egg slull in the lioUow
that they had prepared for laying in. After this, I went for three weeks

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 875

to Swain's Bay. On retiu-ning to Obsei-vatory Bay, only one bird was
heard one night. No eggs were found by anyone. "

The reputed eggs of the Black-bcllied Stomi Petrel, collected on
ClilYy Lshmd, described iu the " Catalogiie of Nests :uid Eggs" of the
Australian Museum, p 361 (1889), and by myself (1883), aix- undoubtedly
those of the Diving Petrel ( I'elcatnoidi-s). I am able to prove tliis
from the fact that I aftei-wai-ds obtained similar eggs from the island,
accompanied by one of the parents in the flesh, for identification.

665. — Cymodrom.\ gr.vllaria, Vieillot. — (648)
WHITE-BELLIED STORM PETREL.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 63.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 366.

Geoyraphical Dtafrihutinn. — Seas of South Queensland, New South
Wales, Victoria, South and W^est Australia and Tasmania ; also seas of
Southern Hemisphere in general, northward to the coast of Florida.

Nest and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Observations. — This dark httle bird, another of " Mother Carey's
Chickens," with white imder-siu-face like its other tiny congeners, flies
chiefly over the surface of the Southern seas, but is probablv scarce in
Australian waters.

Gould, who observed all the five (naming two) Australian species of
Storm Petrels at sea, grapliically describes their pecuhar action. It
must be a delight to witness, as he has done, any Stormy Petrel " fluttering
over the glassy surface of the, ocean dvu'ing calms with an easj', butterfly-
like motion of the wings, and buffeting and breasting with equal vigour
the crests of the loftiest waves of the storm ; at one moment descending
into thcii- deep troughs, and at the next rising with the utmost alertness
to their highest points, apparently from an impulse communicated as
much by striking the surface of the water with its webbed feet as by the
actions of the wings."

Gould was imable to trace the breeding place of this Stoi-m Petrel,
nor are we any better off to-day, for its breeding haunt is still one of the
secrets of the seas.

8/6

NESTS AND EGGS Oh AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

FAMILY— PUFFINID^ : PETRELS, &c.

Sub-family — Puffinin^.

666. — PuFFiNUs CHLOROEHYNCHUs, Lesson. (638)

p. sphenurus, Gould.

WEDGE-TAILED PETREL.

l-igurc. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 5S.

Reference.- — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 372.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 467 {1865) ; Legge : Birds of Ceylon,
p. 1055 (1880); Crowfoot (Metcalfe): Ibis, p. 268 (1S85);
Buller : Birds of New Zealand, vol. li., p. 235 (1888) ; North :
Austn. Mus. Cat., app. (1889) ; Campbell : Proc. Roy. Soc,
Victoria, vol. iii., new ser., p. 6 (1890).

Geugruphical Distrihutiun. — Seas of Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, South and West Australia, and Tasmania; also New Zealand
and northwards to the Society Islands, Central Pacific.

Nest. — A rabbit-like burrow, generally extending in an oblique
direction for two or three feet, rarely more than five feet. Sometimes
a hole or fissure in a rock is chosen, while occasionally the egg is de-
posited under a bush.

Eyys. — Clutch, one; tiiie oval in form, or tapering towards one
end ; texture of shell somewhat coarse ; surface minutely pitted and
slightly glossy; colour, pure white. Dimensions in inches of two
examples from Norfolk Island: (1) 2-6 x 1-7, (2) 2-5 x 176; selected
examples from Abrolhos Islands (West coast) : (1) 2-69 x 1-6,
(2) 2'47 X 1-56, (3) 2-43 x 1-68, (4) 2-4 x 1-6, (5) 2-34 x 1-56.

Obnervation.i. — This dusky Petrel, or Puffin, resembles the familiar
Mutton Bird (P. feiiuirustria), of Bass Strait and elsewhere, but has a
more wedge-shaped tail (hence its name) and lighter (yellowish-flesh)
coloured feet. The colour of the Petrel by day is a dark, chocolate-brown,
a little lighter on the under siu-face ; bill and feet, yellowish flesh-colovu- ;
total length about 16 inches.

In addition to frequenting Australian seas, the Wedge-tailed Petrel
also ranges over the Indian Ocean on one side and the Pacific on the
other. This Petrel is known to breed on Norfolk Island (whence
I received eggs from Mr. F. M. Nobbs, taken on dates 7th December,
1886, and 1st January, 1887, respectively). Lord Howe, and Seal Rocks,
off the New South Wales coast ; and on certain islands on the western
coast of Australia.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

V/

In the west Gilbert found Wedge-tailed Petrols abundant, especially
on the West Wallaby Island, Houtman's Abrolhos. It was on the
same group, at the guano station on Rat Island, that I enjoyed my
dehghlful experiences among these interesting creatures. At that time
(December, 1889) I was the guest of Mr. F. C. Broadhm-st and liis
manager, Mr. Gilbert Beddoes. Until I mentioned the fact at the
Science Association, 1890, it had not hitherto been recorded that this
particular Petrel is nocturnal (at all events, diu-ing the breeding season)
in its habits. It is somewhat extraordinary that such a peculiar trait
in the bird's character should have escaped Gilbert's notice. About
half-an-hour after sundown they commence moaning and get uneasy in
their biuTOWs, and shortly afterwards birds may be seen swiftly cutting
the air in many directions. The moaning and infant-Uke cries of the
Wedge-tailed Petrel are a curious experience. After a ramble, one
quiet night, I noted in my pocket book next morning that " the whole
island seemed gi-oaning and travailing in pain with the noise of Mutton
Birds." About half-an-hoiu- before sunrise they disappivir undergi-ound,
when all is quiet as far as they are concerned. The attitude of this
Petrel upon the ground resembles a duck upon water, a squatting posture.
When walking they are assisted by their wings, which gives the birds
a waddling or lame gait. The eggs, like those of the Noddies and other
birds, are excellent eating, not at all fishy in flavoiu-, as may be
supposed.

At midnight I steal out. It is calm, moonlight, A continual din
falls upon the ear from 10,000 voices of Sooties (true to their vernacu-
lar name, they cease not day or night to call " wide-awake ") ; some
are overhead, but the greater crowds are gathered towards the further
end of the island, and by reason of the distance the noise produced may
be likened to that coming from a vast swamp of innumerable frogs.
Added to these soimds there issue from above, below, around, the
melancholy moaning and infant-like cries of Petrels — literally it seems
as if the whole island were gi'oaning and travailing in pain. I feel
completely spell-bound while listening to a grand weird symphony, not-
withstanding it is being plavod upon the iiidcst chords of nature. The
Curlew Sandpiper introduces its whistle, the lapping wavelets under
the limestone ledges at high-water mark keep time, while great
fundamental effect is given by the sullen roar of the booming breakers
upon the long reef four miles distant. By the dim moonlight I can
discern a gi'oup of Petrels in squatting postures. At my approach
they scatter — some noiselessly on long pointed wings swiftly disappear
into gloom ; others with awkward gait, assisted by flapping wings, move
aside. Tlieir flight is very rapid ; with terrible thump the bii'd some-
times comes in contact, with the iron roofs of the station buildings.
Tlie season of my visit the first of these Petrel's eggs was dis-
covered in the burrows on the 17th November, while the majority of
birds laid the following week, consequently some of the eggs I collected
were much incubated, but no young were yet hatched. On the 22nd
November, fm-ther south, on Eottnest Island, I obtained a couple of
fresh eggs of this Petrel.

8/8

A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

My gxiide for the day on the island (Rottnest) is one of the native
prisoners named " Nuukey, " from the Murchison district, who is a
branded murderer. A gentle canter of about tliree miles brings
us to the foot of a hill, where stands the lighthouse, about
two hundred feet above searlevel, the tower being fifty-tliree
feet high. We keep the track to the right, continuing along
the centre of the island, which is pear-shaped, and are heading
as it were tOiwards the neck. The track is veiy undulatoiy,
cliiefly through thick acacia scrub decorated with wreaths of flowering
clematis. The Singing Honeyeaters axe heard everywhere. Another
three miles and we anive at a narrow, cliffy, sandstone point about
one hundred and twenty feet above the sea. This is the West End,
or Cape Vlaming, named after the discoverer of Rottnest, who at the
same time — Christmas, 1697 — discoveixd Swan River. From this bold
point of vantage we look down on either hand upon miniatiue bays
with steep shores, near wliich a gentle swell is breaking over low flat
reefs. Securing the horses, Nimkey and I descend the weather face of
the cape to the Mutton Bird biUTOws. He eschews my Mutton Bird
ci'ook, and prefers digging out the bvuTows with his hands, like a dog.
We withdraw many birds, but are unsuccessfvil with the eggs, only
procuring one. However, the identification of the bird is important,
and it proves to be the Wedge-tailed Petrel, hitherto vmi'ecorded for
the island. We return to quarters by noon.

Although on the western coast the Wedge-tailed Petrel appears to
lay its eggs about the end of November and the beginning of December,
Dr. Metcalfe states that on Norfolk Island he has seen noarly-fledgcd
young on the 27th October, and fi-esh eggs in January.

667. — PuFFiNus AssiMiLis, Gould. (635)

p. nug(i.i\ Solandcr.

ALLIED PETREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 59.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 384.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of .\iistralia, Hand-
book, vol. ii., p. 45q (i,S65) ; Reischek : Trans. New Znland
Inst., vol. xviii., p. 95 (1SS5); Crowfoot (Metcalfe): \h\^, p.
269 (iSSs) ; Duller : Birds of New Zealand, vol. ii., p. 239
(1888); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., app., pi. 21, fig. 3 (iS.Sq).

Geagraphical Diitrihufioii. — Seas of South Queensland, New South
Wales, Victoria, South and West Australia and Tasmania; also New
Zealand, and northward in the Atlantic to the vicinity of Madeira.

Nest.— A rabbit-like bun-ow, from 1 to 4 feet in length ; similar to
those of the other Puffini; sometimes under stones or rocks.

T!ggs. — Clutch, one ; broad oval in shape; texture of shell somewhat
fine; siu'face minutely pitted, and witli or witlion( a faint trare of

jVESTS and eggs of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 879

gloss. Dimensions in inches of two examples from Norfolk Island :
1,1) 1-96 X 1-4, (2) 1-94 X 1-36; two from Rat Island, off west coast;
^l; 1-93 X 1-44, (2) 1-9 x 1-4.

Observations. — This little Petrel is an exceedingly interesting species.
G'ould i-ecordcd it for the eastern shores of Australia and New Zealand.
I captiu-ed a specimen on the AbroDios Islands, Western Australia ; and
since then the Hon. C. Baring and Mr. Ogilvie-Grant fovmd the species
breeding as far north as the Sav;vge Islands, between Madeira and the
CanarieSj in the Atlantic.

On my arrival at the Abrolhos, December, 1889, I found the AUied
Petrel had finished breeding, but Mr. Gilbert Beddoes had thoughtfully
saved for mc specimens of the eggs which were taken dm'ing the fii-st week
of July, while his men were quariying for guano on Rat Island.
However, I was anxious to obtain one of the same kind of birds that laid
there for complete identification. Fortmiately, I took a single specimen
which appeared to have remained behind in tlie interests of science, and
which I knocked down with my egging crook during a midnight peregii-
nation. The birds have been known, attracted by the light, to fall into
the fii'es of persons camping upon the islands.

It has not been previously recorded that these particular birds ai'e
noctm-nal. However, most Petrels probably are nocturnal in their
habits when they are on or near land, but., singular as it may appear,
when at sea they become more dimnal.

In 1887, from Mr. F. M. Nobbs, I fii'st received the eggs of the AUied
Petrel, kindly forwarded from Norfolk Island, where the bird is called
the " Watchman," and where the eggs were collected as in Western Aus-
tralia, during Julv and about the end of the month. Therefore it seems
remarkable that Mr. A. Reischek should have foiuid the same species
laying on islands ofi the New Zealand coast in October or November.
Surely this bird does not lay two broods in a year! Sir W. BuUer
seems to think some Petrels do, and names the Diving Petrel as a
possible one ; but the fact, if siich be the case, has not been proved.

Mr. Reischek infonns us that this little Petrel comes ashore in
October to clean out its bm-rows or make fresh ones, which process male
and female accomplish together, with then- bills and feet. The entrance
is from 4 inches in diameter, and from 3 to 4 feet to the chamber,
sometimes in a winding direction. In most cases he foimd two chambers
similar in size to those he has already described for other Petrels, and in
which there is a hollowed floor, covered with a few leaves and grass,
where the female lays, end of October or early in November, one white
egg. Both pai'ents assist in hatching and rearing the yoimg. Their
habits dui-ing the breeding season are similar to those of the rest of the
ProcfUariifhe family. The young birds are full-gi-own m Febniary,
when the natives collect them for food ; and they are delicious eating.
He saw these birds in considerable numbers dming the breeding season,
on the outlying islands off the east coast, especially on the Morotiii
Group.

Gould received two beautiful snow-white eggs of the Allied Petrel
from Macgillivray. They were collected on Royal Island (wherever that
island is situated), in July, 1854. [? Rossel Island, Louisiades, June,
1844.— E. A. P.]

88o NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

668. PUFFINUS CARNEIPES, Gould. (637)

FLESHY-FOOTED PETREL.

Figure— OouXd : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 57.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 385.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. ii., p. 466 (1S65); Campbell: Proc. Roy. Soc,
Victoria, vol. iii., new ser , p. 6 (1890).

Geiigraphical Distrihutiun. — Seas of West Aixstralia, and probably
other j)arts of southern coast, inchtding Tasmania ; also New Zealand
and northward over the Pacific to Japan.

Nest. — A bnrrow, usually in sandy earth, four to six, frequently eight
feet in length.

Erjga. — Clutch, one ; inclined to oval in shape or tapering towards one
end ; texture of shell somewhat coarse ; surface minutely pitted, occar
sioually with limy nodules and a faint trace of gloss ; colovu-, pure white.
Dimensions in inches : (1) 2-69 x 1-76, (2) 2-68 x 1-8, (3) 2-56 x 1-74.

Ohaervations. — This fine Petrel flies over Australian and New Zealand
seas, wandering northwai'd in the Pacific into Japanese watei's. As
Gould points outj it differs from the common Mutton Bird (P. tenui-
rostrkj in the greater length and the squarer form of its tail and in tlie
fleshy colour of its bill, also of its legs — hence the good vernacular name,
Fleshy-footed Petrel.

Amongst other places, it resoi'ts to the small islands of South-
western Australia, from whence Gould procured his types of birds and
eggs. He most probably got them (through Gilbert) on St. Alouran
Islands, off Cape Leeuwin.

I found it nesting on Breaksea Island, New Year, 1890. when I
secured eight eggs, mostly incubated. Brealisea is about nine miles
from Albany, a mile or more long, nigged, with a summit 380 feet high,
where stands a lighthouse and reporting station. When steaming up
the So'vmd and approaching the island, its gi'anite sides are seen to slope
in teiTible manner to the water's edge, where a heavy swell sends spray
far up the rocks. It is now calm. What must be the fmy of the sea
against these battlements in stomi ? Michaelmas Island lies near on
the left, like a huge, crouching lion. Behind is the mainland, where
patches of white, sandy beaches gleam at the foot of ^rocky hills, whose
grey boulders, by distance, resemble depasturing flocks amid dark vege-
tation. Still further is seen Cape Vancouver, with other promontories,
gi'ey misted by intei-vening spate, where Mount Manyi)eak reigns
supreme. Nearer to the right is Bald Head, na.me well suggested by
precipitoiLS, fluted sides of rock, but sheltered enough to leeward to let
the sombro-coloiu-ed foliage descend almost to liigh-water mark, with
here and there flat, rocky spaces, ornamented with moss and lichen. By

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIKDS. 88l

the kiud permission of Mr. R. C. Loftie, the Govcrmneut Resident,
Albany, Mr. G. Woods and myself arc permitted to land at Breaksea,
while a steam launch delivers stores for the lighthouse quarters. The
island supports chiefly a green, aromatic-scented, sciiib, nishes, tvissocky
grass, and a snaall variety of pig-face weed. We are kindly treated
by the lighthouse folk. Tlie children, with glee, soon pilot us to the
Mutton Bird burrows, where a small dog is sending clouds of sand in all
directions in his anxiety to withdi-aw the hidden bii-ds. He altogether
disappears, but soon reappears, hinder end and stvimpy tail foremost,
with a flapping croaking bird in his jaw.^. HuiTah ! the Fleshy-footed
Petrel — the bird I have been seeking for all round the coa.st. It is a
larger bird, and has not the black feet and legs of the Phillip Island
(Victoria) species. By the aid of the familiar Mutton Birders' crook we
rake out about a dozen of the single eggs from sandy burrows, 4 feet to
6 feet long, on the weather face of the island. It is now the second day
of the New Year, therefore the eggs were fai' incubated, nevertheless
they are valuable additions to my oological collection.

The first eggs were noticed by the lighthouse keeper on 30th
November, and were plentiful on 7th December. The dates apply to
Mutton-bird Island, Tor Bay, while some eggs were also collected on the
mainland adjacent. This is the fh'st instance I ajn aware of, of any
species of Petrels laying on the mainland of Australia, excepting perhaps
the common Mutton Bird, which, legend says, years ago used to breed
on the Back Beach of SoiTento. Petrels invariably resort to isolated
rocks or islands for the purpose of breeding.

The following season the principal lighthouse keeper on that island
was kind enough to forwai-d me additional data. He observed that the
Fleshy-footed Petrel appeared the first week of September, and fresh
eggs were taken during the first week in December. Specimens he
forwarded wei'e dated the lOtli of that month.

Sir Walter Duller states that the Fleshy-footed Petrel is compara-
tively common off New Zealand, and breeds in large colonies on some of
the small islands near the coast. He received a pair of live birds from
Captain Fairchild, who obtained them on White Island, Bay of Plenty,
where, it is stated, they were breeding at the beginning of November,
but it is not stated whether eggs were taken. Probably not, or else
Sir Walter would have described them.

56

882 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

669. — PuFFiNUs TENUiROSTRis, TeniiiuiR-k. — (636)
p. hreviraiidus, Brandt.

SHOET-TAILED PETREL (MUTTON BIRD).

TigurL. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 56.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 3S8.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Davies : Tasmanian Journal, vol. it.,
p. 13 {1846); Gould: Birds of .Australia (1848), also Hand-
book, vol. ii., p. 464 (1865) ; Elwes : Ibis, p. 397 (1859) ; Legge :
Proc. Roy. Soc, Tasmania, p. 132 (18S8); BuUer : Birds of
New Zealand, vol. ii., p. 231 (1S88); North: Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 360, also app. {18S9) ; Montgomery : Proc. Roy. Soc,
Tasmania, p. i (ibgi), also (1896): Campbell: Victorian
Naturalist (1894).

Geographical Disfrihufio/i. — Seas of South Queensland, New South
Wales, Victoria, South and West Australia and Tasmania; also New
Zealand and northward over the Pacific to Japan, and eastward to
Samoa..

Ne.'if. — A burrow in the gi'ouiid, scraped out in an oblique direction,
and extending from 1 to 7 feet in length. Every season these holes
are cleansed or biuTowed deeper. Some particular patches of groimd
are so honey-combed with burrows as to resemble a vast rabbit waiTen.
Occasionally eggs are deposited under bushes or tussocks of grass.

Efff/.i. — Clutch, one ; inclined to oval in shape, occasionally more
elliptical; texture of shell somewliat coarse; surface minutely pitted,
slight trace of gloss on some examples ; colour, piu'e white. Dimensions
in inches of selected specimens — Phillip Island: 3-0 x r94 (elongate);
Chappell Island : 2-82 x 1-98 (roundish) ; New Year's Islands : 2-8 x 1-8
(small). Average weight about 31 ozs.

OJnervations. — The Sooty or Short-tailed Petrel, more familiarly
knovni as the Mutton Bird, in siunmer has its gi-eat breeding home
chiefly on the smaller islands in Bass Strait, where it is known by the
native name " Yolla. " This dusky-coloured bird is also found in New
Zealand, where it is abundant, and breeds in the Hauraki Gulf.
According to Sir Walter Buller, in New Zealand this Petrel sometimes
retires inland to a distance of fifty miles to breed, and the Kaimanawa
Ranges in the Taupo-Patea countiy are cited as a locality. Retiring
inland is a notable exception to the rule, for nowhere in Australia or
Ta.smania docs this Petrel select breeding quartci-s except on small
islands adjacent to the coast or to large islands.

In winter the Mutton Birds roam over the wnriiier waters of the
Pacific, where they have been recorded as far north as Japan, and as far
east as Samoa. At one time it was tliought that when these birds
and their young mysteriously disappeared they departed southward.
But if we reflect for a moment, it seems hardly likely these birds would
betake themselves to the region of frozen seas and cndiu'e the long

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 883

Antarctic night of winter. It would also be contrary to tlie general rule
tliat migi-atory bii-ds breeding in Australia usually do so at the southern
limit of tlieir habitat.

The prodigious numbers of Mutton Birds that arrived or gathered
in Bass Strait in the early days of oui- colonial histoiy are almost
incredible. Many readei-s are familiar with the extraordinary flight
mentioned by tlie illustrious navigator, Matthew Fliudei-s, in his work
on the exploration of Bass Strait. He was in company with Bass at
the time (9th December, 1798), and in the neighboiu-hood of Tkree
Hummock Island. Flinders wiote : " A laxge flock of Gannets was
observed at daylight, and they were followed by such a number of Sooty
Petrels as we had never seen equalled. There was a stream of from
50 to 80 yards in depth and 300 yards or more in breadth. The birds
were not scattered, but were flying as compactly as a free movement
of their wings seemed to allow, and dui'iiig a full hoiu- and a half this
stream of Petrels continued to pass without interruption, at a rate little
inferior to the swiftness of the pigeon. On the lowest computation
I think the number could not have been less than a himdred millions.
Taking the stream to have been fifty yards deep by three hundred
in width, and that it moved at the rate of thirty miles an hour, and
allowing nine cubic yards of sp.ace to each bird, the numbers would
amount to 151,500,000.* the buixows required to lodge this quantity
would be 75,750,000 ; and allowing a square yard to each burrow, they
would cover something more than 18| geogi-aphical square miles of
ground."

Mr. R. H. Davies, an early writer about Mutton Birds, who had
visited the place for five seasons, found the birds so densely congi-egated
in a cloud over Green Island one evening during the breeding season, that
he believed darkness was ushered in full}' ten minutes before the usual
time. Again, Mr. Davies actually sailed through flocks of these birds
all the way from Flinders Island to the Tamar Heads — a distance of
eighty miles.

Gould himself visited Green Island, January, 1839, when he found
eggs and young so numerous as to excite his astonishment.

In more recent years the Rev. Dr. Montgomeiy, diuing one of his
trips to the Fumeaux Mission, by an ingenious computation reckoned
that upon four small islands alone there could not have been less than
2,600,000 birds, old and young.

When I visited Green Island, November, 1893, the place was a sheep
fann, and real mutton was growing where thousands of Mutton Bu-ds
used annuall)- to flourish. However, I observed there were still a few
bunows occupied by these birds.

It is somewhat remarkable that only the smaller islands are sought
by the Mutton Birds for their nurseries. There is not a burrow on
King Island^ the larger islands of Kent Group, or Flinders Island,
or Cape Ban-en Lsland of the Fiu-neaux Group. But gi-eat nui-series
are on islets lying adjacent to these places. These islets as a nde are
flat, clothed with salt^bush and other shrubs, rank tussock grass, pig-face
werd ( Mesfmhriaiithemum ), &c. I had the opportimity of visiting.

* Correct computation, 132,000,000. — A. J. C,

884 A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

with the expeditions of the Field Natui-ahsts' Club of Victoria, New
Year's Islands, oS the north-west comer of King Island — a. place thick
with birds, also with snakes, in fact it is notorious that nearly all the
Mutton Birds' islands ai'e infested with large snakes of the copper-head
species (Hojihcephalus superbus). On the opposite side of the Strait
we foiuid the birds numerous on North-east Island, off Kent Group.
We also found them on Babel Island, off the east coast of Flinders
Island, aaid on several islands in Franklin Soiuid, between Flinders and
Cape BaiTen Islands. Perhaps the greatest rookery in the whole strait
is on Chappell Island, at the western entrance of Franklin Sound, where
we spent a day and a night (26th November, 1893), at the very height
of the egging season. It was, indeed, a joyful and astonishing experience
never to be forgotten.

Chappell Island, or " Hiunmocky," as the islanders call it, is about two
miles long by a brcadtli of abovit ai mile, and is remarkable for its cone-
shaped hill in the centre, rising to a height of 650 feet. The whole of
the'i flat portion of the island, iinder tussock grass, salt-bushes, crops of
nettles and gardens of yellow immoi"telles, &c., is completely honey-
combed with the buiTow-like nests of the sooty-pluniaged birds. Our
cutter was moored to granite boiddei's in a serene little cove on the east
side. We walked across to Shag Boat-harbour, on the south side,
which accommodated the native bird-eggers' fleet — seven or eight
dovible-ended boats. These natives (half-castes), about forty, men,
women and children from the Mission Settlement on Cape Barren
Island, were ashore, some camped in sheds thatched with tussock grass,
others under the lee side of huge gi'anite rocks, with boat sails converted
into tents. We obtained some novel photogi-aphs of the island — boat-
harbour and fleet, group of bird-eggers, and eggei-s at work.

At night we renew our acquaintance witli the multitudes of incoming
birds. About sundown the fonns of birds are just discerned dodging
over the horizon. Quickly they approach in perfect crowds, not straight,
but circling swiftly in all directions round the island. We look across
the channel, where the bold peaks of Flindei-s, piercing a billowy thimder-
cloud, are lighted up by the western twilight and afford an excellent
backgi'oiuid to the multitudes of dark birds cutting the air with whistling
wings to and fro past us. With darkness coming on apace many of the
birds ventiu-e on the island, and by eight o'clock nearly all are landed.
Then is heard such a row and a hubbulj — a perfect pandemonium — made
by thous;inds upon thousands of birds in tlieir buiTows, croaking, calling,
fighting each other or battling with snakes. After a surfeit of these
mai'vellous scenes and sounds we retire to rest, my brother Tom and I,
on oiu" tussock-made couch, protected by the boat's sail, on land — snakes
notwithstanding — the rest of the party afloat in tlie boat itself.

Having touched at some of the breeding places, the histoi-y of this
exceedingly interesting bird may be briefly mentioned. From what I
have gathered from old sailors and sealers, but chiefly from the islandei's
who wore bom and bred in the locality, it appears that from about the
1.'5lli frO the 16th September the birds first amve to clean out tlieir
buiTows, and, it is presumed, also to mate.* Much house cleaning.

• Some persons believe the birds are mated before they arrive.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 88^

expelling snakes aud other vermin, and mariying and giving in marriage
aj:e carried on day and night till the first week in November, when all
go to sea again for a trip. During the biuTow cleaning process it is
a curious sight to see the clouds of sand issuing from the holes all over
the land. The return of the birds, both male aud female, the latter to
lay, commences about the 18th November, and continues for about ten
days, the great focus of adTivals occm-ring probabl}^ on the evening of
the 25th or 26th, or after what is known to fishermen and others as
the Mutton Bird gale. If the weather be boisterous, the birds usually
arrive earlier in the evening.* 'ihe female lays diu'iug the night sh;;
aiTives or night following. After the egg is deposited she leaves for
a week to recrait and gi-ow fat at sea, while her lord steadfastly sits.
He goes out the following week, and so on, turn and tiuTi about, for
eight weeks, till the egg is hatchedf The young remain in the burrows
till about the middle of April, when they are simply a ball of fat, and
have a tallowy appearance — hence, it is said, tlie name Mutton Bird —
and heavier than their parents. At this stage the parents desert them.
As a consequence, fatty absoi-ption ensues, quills and feathers sprout
and develop, and the youngsters, becoming impatient ajid hungry, clear
out too, about ten days or a fortnight after their parents. By the
first week of May not a feather — save a few dead carcasses — remains
upon any of the islands. Nothing is seen of the Mutton, Birds again
till the following spring, when some balmy evening in September, their
familiar dusky fonns may again be seen swiftly cutting the horizon and
approaching from over the sea.

It should be mentioned that before the young Mutton Birds follow
their parents they devour a quantity of sand or gi'avel. They may
do this to aid their digestion when at sea, but tlie popular belief is, it is
taken to ballast themselves, because it is said that young birds not so
balla.sted, if thrown into the water, will eventually drown.

When visiting their nesting homes, the birds come and go imder
cover of darkness, it is thought on account of the dread of their
enemies — Gulls, &c. One early morning, just fom- minutes after the
last Petrel had departed seaward. Dr. Montgomery heard the barking
wail of a Pacific Gull. Twenty minutes later, a squadron of these gi-eat
creatiu'es, accompanied by many crows, came wheeling overhead, no
doubt after belated Petrels or stray eggs.

Turning to the economic value of the Mutton Bird, not, only are the
eggs, when fresh, sought after, but the birds themselves, more paiiicu-
larly the young, wliich are the staple food of the islanders. Pei-sons
who are fond of bacon, pork, and other fatty foods, take readily to the
rich fle.sh of a young Mutton Bird, which is decidedly delicate and
delicious in flavour, if properly cooked. Some liken the flavour to that
of fresh caug'lit hen'ing.

The islanders commence to preserve the young birds about the 20tli

' During our trip to the Furneaux Group we ascertained tlie first eggs were
taken on Babel Island, on the iSth, while previously we had taken eggs on the 20th
on New Year's Islands.

t Bishop Montgomery states that the male returns every evening and probably
feeds the female during incubation.

886 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

March, carrying on the operation till the bird^ finally qviit. The yoimg
bird is dragged from its burrow, its head is placed between the first two
fingers of the right hand of a " birder, " a downward jerk, together with
the weight of the bird's own body is given, and the neck is easily
dislocated.

Fifty or sixty are tliiis strvmg on a. spit or stick, care being taken
to keei> the head upwards so as not to lose any oil. This oil, which
is of a reddish colour, is drained from the bird, and is used for lighting
and other purposes. The feathers are then plucked, the body scalded
to remove all down, and the feet are cut off. The bodies are placed
on tliC' grass to cool by the evening, when they are cleaned, head and
neck removed, and finally salted and pickled in baiTels, each family
taking, about 500 or 600 birds or more for home consumption. Twenty
young birds will produce a gallon of oil, wliich is worth commercially
about 3/6, and is very useful for the preparation of leather, &c. Pickled
birds, are worth 10/- per himdred; while the eggs, in season, sell at from
lOd. to 1/- per dozen. The down and feathers* of the birds — an un-
touched or wasted industry — should prove exceedingly valuable.

On account of the great annual drains of these economic birds, as
well as tlie numbers of eggs taken every November, the question may
be asked, are the niunbers of birrts diminishing? Judging by the
evidence of the islanders and my own observations on Phillip Island, I
shordd say " No.'' If the birds were unmolested, the present biurows
on tlie islands would not contain them, so gr'eat are their number-s.
All the burrows being occupied, thousands of eggs would be, and are at
times, when the glut ariives, deposited upon the bare ground, and, by
exposiu'e, perish, or ai'e devoru-cd by Gulls and other enemies. However,
legislation may be needed in the near future, and especially with regard
to depasturing cattle upon islands containing " rookeries, " for these
animals, treading all over the place, cave in the biuTow-uests and crush
both old and yoiuig.

Dr. H. H. Montgomery, Bishop of Tasmania, whose duties pLriodically
take him to the Fiuneaux Group, read an interesting and valuable paper
before the Royal Society of Tasmania on Mutton Birds, from notes
taken in the locality during the " birding '' season, March, 1891. Part
of the paper dwelt on the utility of the bird and the futiu-e need of
its proper protection. Dr. Montgomery was kind enough to foi-ward
me a copy of his article, together with photographs of bird.s, Ac, he took
on a subsequent visit. I shall here quote somewhat largely from the
Bisho])'s account. rtis Lordship states : ' In tlic Fmiieaux Group
the Mutton Birds used to breed in much greater numbers than at
present, and I venture to hope that the chief effect of this paper may
be the timely mcvement by the Government to save from almost utter
dastruction an industry which adds distinctly to the wealth of the
State, and supplies a healthy article of food. At present tlic most
iiiipm-tant homes of those birds in the breeding season are Chappell
Inland (called, usually, ' Hiunmocky,' because of tlie liill in the centre),
Little Dog and Big Dog Islands, Green Island and Fjittlc Green Island,

* Feathers of Mutton l^iiils were fir.st e.xhibited by Mr. \V. Giinn, of Laiin-
ceston, at the Great ICxhibition, London, 1S51.

V*

-'?<■

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 88/

and Babel Island. These pliices ;ue nothing more than low, sandy
spots, from 300 to 1,200 acres in extent, with hardly a tree .(except on
Big Dog Island), and covered with long, yellow grass, growing up to the
waist. Most uninviting looking spots they appear to be.

■' On the 3rd of ilarch I landed on Little Dog Island, and received
my fu"st introduction to these most interesting sea birds. At 6 p.m.
not a Mutton Bird was in sight. Indeed, dvu-ing the fortnight that I was
cruising about in a boat I never saw a Petrel in the day time anywhere.
It is their habit to fly away to sea ven- early in the morning toi distances
forty and fifty miles away, retiu'iiing only when it is dusk. Whether
they have long ago cleared the immediately siUTOunding waters of the
food they require I cannot say ; but it is a sm-prising fact that not one
of the old birds is ever visible in the neighbom-laood of their young
throughout the day. Walking about on a rookeiy is a matter of no
mean difficulty. The ground, always loose and powdeiy, is evei^where
perforated with holes from two to three feet deep, about the diameter
of a rabbit biuTow. Among the long gi-ass it is almost impossible to
prevent ciiishing down the sand and endangeiing the lives of ^the yoimg
bii-ds by suffocation, at the same time falling headlong oneself. Just
at sunset I was invited to go some two hundred yards up on to the
higher groiuid — the island is only two hundred acres in extent — in order
to see the birds come in. I shall never, forget that evening as long as
I live. The sun was setting, leaving a broad belt of crimson on the
western horizon, and soon the suiTounduig sea became almost invisible.
Not a sound was heard except the mstling of the gi-ass in the wind.
There was no indication that there was a living thing on the island.
There were no cries of ssa birds. The stillness was wonderful. Presently
a single dark-winged fomiiflitted across the island and vanished again into
the gloom. In another ten seconds thousands upon thousands of birds
seemed to spring like magic up out of the darkness from every quarter
without warning or ciy of any kind. And now backwards and forwards
before my dazzled sight I saw these countless dark shadows shooting
with lightning rapidity athwart the last of the evening light. Still
no articulate soimd was heard. Nothing but the whistle as i^ of bullet
after bullet through the air, bewildering one with the sense of numbers
and of mysterious rushing life. Repeatedly a biid would dash within
an inch of my head, and then wheel like liglitning to one side to escape
a collision. So imminent seemed the danger of {irriving at home minus
an ear or a nose from contact with a sharp beak that I was fain to crouch
down in the long grass to escape an .accident. To sit down on the
ground on that particular island was possible because there were no
snakes. Nothing would have induced me ,to have taken up the same
position in the mouth of March had I been upon the island called
' Hvimmocky.' But of this hereafter. The minutes pa.ssed, and still
this dizzy, wliirling, hurly-biu'ly of creatures continued — silent, and
even awe-inspiring. Sometimes tliey came in squadi-ons of himdreds,
sometimes by tens. But still they came; each bird after a turn or two
sinking with unemng instinct on to its hole, finding it in the long gi-ass
and in the darkness with a certainty which was tnily marvellous. It
was difficult to tear oneself away from this wonderful spectacle. But

888 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

at length we retiuTied to our tent, pitched near the wa.ter's edge, but
still among the bushes, and all night long as I lay trying to sleep I heard
the cooing and cackling of innumerable birds feeding their young in
their subten-anean homes, some of them apparently within a yard of
my eai'. At length I fell asleep, and before I awoke, at six o'clock in
tlio morning, there was not a bird to^ be seen on the island. All the
old Petrels had long ago sped away to tlicir distant feeding places. I
regi-etted that I had not witnessed their morning exit. In its ,way it
is as striking as their homeward journey. For, as these bii-ds cannot
fly off tlie ground, especially in the long grass, each one has to walk
either to the sea shore or else to the top of some rock before it can take
its flight. In some cases this journey must liave meant a^ distance of
many hunch-ed yards. Mr. Davies relates in his paper, read in 1846,
that the sealers showed him the maamer in which they caught the old
birds for the sake of their feathers, stopping up all the tracks they made
except one, which led to a pit into which they fell, and were suffocated
by those that crowded after them. I am thankful to say this custom
does not obtain at the present time. On pvery occasion when I could
take the opportunity, I used to take up my position upon the rookery
to watch for the wonderful, silent rush of birds after dark. It never
ceased tO' chann as well as astonish."

Dr. Montgomery summed up with several sound suggestions,
principally that the Govermnent should resume possession of the smaller
islands where the birds breed, that have been leased; that every person
wlio " birds " should be licensed ; and that the birding time should be
regulated.

I shall now give briefly some of my observations and description of
the " rookeries " on Phillip Islaaid, Western Port-, Victoria, where 1
enjoyed my first and last experiences among the dusky crowds of Mutton
Birds. The localities visited by the birds are Cape Wollomai, the
Narrows, and McCaflie's Reef on that island ; the former, however, is
the recognised breeding place, where biUTOWS extend for miles along
the coast.

My fu-st trip was in November, 1884, in company with two field
natui-ahst friends — Messrs. Alex. Borthwick, junr., and Ed. Cornwall.
I remember the year well, because it was the last occasion we had the
23rd — ^the anniversary of the " Proclamation of the Constitution of
the Colony of Victoria " — as a Government holiday. On the 22nd,
fisherman Jolui Robinson took charge of us at Hastings, whence
we had a meixy run in the " Ocean Bird '■ — a boat .well named for such
an outing — to Cape Wollomai. We aa-rived on the Ca]x: about mid-
day. A full accoiuit of tliis most instructive trip appeared in " The
Australasian," 31st January, 1885.

Out of our boat's sails we constructed a tent in a snug sandy x-ovc
under Red Point, on tlie northern side of the Cape. It was a cliajTn-
ingly sheltered nook, and siUToimdcd immediately in the reai- with high
sind liumniocks, clothed with fonis and other scnib.

Wo commenced to work in real earnest. Having anned oui-selves
each witli a crook, i.e., a thin tea-tree stick about seven feet Jong, with
a portion of sheep fencing-wire doubled and attached to the cud in the

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 88y

figui-e of a pothook, for raking the eggs out of the Muttop. Birds' biUTOws ;
and iiiter a substantial meal off half a sheep, shipped \vith us from
Hastings, we ascended the sand hills and were diiectly upon tHie Cape.
A strong odour of excreta and guauo reached oiu- sense of smell. We
were amongst the Mutton Birds. A biuxow was discovered here and
tliere. By introducing om- long sticks we ascertained a. few birds were
ah-eady at home, because they attacked the end with a rat-tat-tat from
their peisuasive bills. With a little bit of fencing and manoeuvi-ing an
egg was raked from a bmrow, again from another hole, and.^o on, until
we h;ul a scoi'e before smidown. At this time we crossed i the neck of
land on to the back beach to await the an-ival of the evening's contingent
of buds. The locality was a complete network of bmTovfs, highly per-
fumed with incense of guano. The ocean was about 200 feet below us,
with a sm-f gently coiling in. The sun had set ; we sat down in anxioiTS
expectation to be introduced to our feathered friends. , Precisely at
thirtv-five minutes after sundown, one bird dai-ted in fi'om seaward like
an arrow ; but ' one swaUow does not make a summer.' Presently a
few more flew round, then a dozen, then hundreds, and, incredible as
it may seem, then thousands. Such a scene as was witnessed that
evening is extremely difficult to depict on paper. Imagine now in the
gloaming, lit up by the new-homed moon, myriads of fonns of dusky-
coloiued birds cutting the air in all directions with lightning-like rapichty,
their flight being like that of wild Ducks, very swift. We stand behind
bushes as the birds whizz pa.«t. Two or more may ^ be coming in the
du'ection of one of us, who laimches out with his egging crook at the
first; it is by like a Swift, and he stiikes a yard or two behind it, while
the next bird nearly hfts his hat. However, at, times the air is so tluck
that it is well nigh impossible to miss a bird if you were to strike. But
it is cruel sport to fell birds thus. By about half-past eight the
majority of birds had alighted. Ihe whole place was literally ahve
with featliei"s ; and such a noise — flapping of wings along the gi'ound,
pattering of feet, nistling through grass and bushes, hundreds already
underground croaking and squeaking, some wi-angling for biUTOws and
others getting ousted. It appeared as if it would take all night
to settle down ; therefore we directed oiu- footsteps campward by the
aid of what light yet remained of the setting moon. After getting
comfortably settled under canvas for the night, the gentle noise from
tlie ocean soon lulled us to sleep.

Next morning, at dayhght, we had Mutton Bird eggs frying in a
pan ; we relished them much. Then we started with om- sticks, hand-
bags, and a couple of fish-baskets to gather in eggs. We visited the
locality, a decline facing the back beach, where we observed the most
bh-ds land on the previous evening. This siding resembled a great
rabbit>wairen, being a complete network of holes, except where the
earth's siu'face was covered with a species of creeping ice-plant. It was
a comical picture to observe the quintette raking away at the holes with
long sticks. How eagerly each member worked — one on his knees,
another doubled in two, like the man with the " muck-rake ; " another
grasping a croaking bird by its wing flights, while another conveyed a
hat brimming full of eggs to the nearest basket. The skipper of oiu"

8^ N£srs Aa'd eggs of Australian birds.

boat and his boy had served their apprenticeship at Mutton Bird egging.
The remainder of us were novices, but proved very apt pupils, and
quickly learnt by the feehng of the stick whether we had gi'appled the
egg or the bird. Numerous holes were at too steep an angle or other-
wise awkward to rake out. It is extremely gratifying, after tediously
scraping away in the dark for perhaps several auiautes, to see the white
egg roll up to the surface in the curved end of the stick. Other times
when an egg was successfully grappled and was being withdi'awu, the
poor bird would follow it up, and by the aid of its cheek throw it back.
In shallow burrows, where the daylight pierced, we observed them go
through that perfoi-mance in several instances. Many birds had not
yet laid, and would not till the following momiug. These would often
rush out if the stick were rudely tlu'ust m, or be mi willingly cUagged
out by the crook. In eitlier case we invariably secui'ed them ; if they
contained an egg we accordingly delivered them ; but we had to beware
of their forcible beak and toe-nails, to guard oui' hands from being
lacerated. We soon became expert at this work. The patient was
caught by the flights of each wing, and twirled over upon its back on
the grass ; we pLiced our knees on the extended wings with the bii'd's
tail from us and its head " in chauceiy " between oui' knees, holdiug a
leg in either hand; we turned the thumbs downward, gently and cai'c-
lully pressed the abdomen, .then the egg was delivered. The owner
scampered off, to all appeai-ances dehghted, and finally disappeared over
a clitf and flew out tO' sea. The locomotion of the buds is a peculiar
waddle, with legs extended and apart and wings flappiug along the
gi-ouud. When in a liiUTy they stumble against the slightest obstacle,
which often brings them over upon their side, or to the riglit-about tuni.

On reckoniug oiu- takings for the three days, the , total exceeded
300 specimens, distributed as follows: 1 Sea Eagle, 14 Mutton Birds
with li50 eggs, 4 Seagulls with 22 eggs, 4 Penguins with 2 eggs, a pair
of Hooded l3ottrels witli 3 eggs, and a basket of fish. Thus ended a
most joyful and instructive outing amongst the Mutton Birds.

The account of my last Mutton Bird eggmg excui'sion appeared in
■ The Australasian," 2nd January, 1897, and substantially is as follows:
We leave Hastings in the centre-board fishing boat " Stormy Petrel,"
bound for the Mutton Bird rookeries on Cape WoUomai, Plullip Island.
Our party numbers four, in charge of skipper J. F. Bi'own.

The night is beautiful and balmy. ihe moon, just past her full,
nses red, betokening a continuance of heat. We ' shake down ' con-
fortably on the deck of the boat, the various night voices of birds —
Sea Cui'lews, Greeushanks, Cormorants, Swans, Ducks, Plovers, &c., —
gathered on the mud flats, sounding strangely in our ears.

About 2 a.m. we drift on a swiftly-ebbing tide past San Remo
(Griffith's Point), whore all is silent, and where the buildings, sheltered
beneath a gi'ove of banksia trees, are gleaming in the moonlight. In a
snug, sandy bight, on the lee of Cape Wolloniai, we land about 3 a.m.
Cape WoUomai is about two miles and a^half due south of San Remo,
and about twenty-two miles from Hastings.

Tents were pitched in the bright moonlight, and all luggage wa.s
ashore by sunrise. Our quarters were exceedingly comfortable, being

N£STS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 8iJI

sheltered by two stunted tea-trees ( LepfogpermumJ, with tops like
umbrellati, throwing a grateful shade. Here, shielded fx-om the meri-
dian Sim, we reclined, clothed only in our jjy jamas, drinking delightful
' billy ' tea, or occasionally a lemon squash. At our back we have the
protection of a sand dune covered with scrub, tussock grass, bracken,
&c. There were stimtcd bushes in front of our tents, which faced the
beach. Fresh water in sufficient quantity was handy. At intervals
along the steep shore water as clear as ciystal issued from tiny springs.
It was quite wholesome, with a soft taste.

Other camps were near. During our stay, about twelve or thirteen
boats arrived with egging parties from different parts of Western Port.
The largest party numbered eleven. Four-horse conveyances came by
Newhaven along the strand when the tide was out. There were also
several visitors, including ladies, on horseback.

After an early breakfast at 6 a.m. we started to explore the Mutton
Bird rookeries. We found the place somewhat altered since our visit
twelve years ago. For instance, there are on Red Point piled blocks
of red gi-anite quarried by Messrs. Clutten & Chambers, of Melbourne,
and alongside the quarry a dwelUng, cranes, &c.

A few Mutton Birds were in their bunows, and had laid. The
burrows, like rabbit wan-ens, extended over many acres of the cape
under a covering of horehomid, pig-face weed adorned with small pink
flowers, sword and tussock grass, &c. The chief rookeries are nearest
the sea. You can always tell when you are on a good rookery by the
strong odour of guano and the musty smell of the sea-birds. Except
for the scrub the cape appears at a distance bald and naked. The
summit is reached from the inland side by a series of undulations, till
you stand 332 feet above sea-level, peering over a ragged and frowning
bluff. The cape in its broadest part is about 1 J ndles across. It seems
an omission that an important headland like Wollomai is not men-
tioned in the ' Class Book of Geograjjhy ' used in the State schools.
From tliis coign of vantage there is seen a most magnificent panorama
of land and sea.

At 10 o'clock it was excessively hot — we could see the mainland
simmering in haze. The heat drove us to camp, where we rested till
the cool of the evening. We found it convenient to work on the
rookeries morning and evening, resting in camp when the day was
warmest. There were two advantages in turning out of camp soon
after daylight — it was the most pleasant time to gather eggs, and we
get oiu' choice of the rookeries.

Our party killed three snakes and saw as many more which made
theu" escape. Nearly every egging party reported adventures with
snakes. One is startled when withdrawing the crook to see a copper-
head dait out past one's hand. Large blue-tongued lizards were plentiful.
Several eggs left in camp were cleanly sucked by these reptiles during
our absence. We caught one in the act. We stupefied it with narcotic
juice from a dirty pipe, in order to get it to pose quietly for its
photograph.

We vary our programme by spending a night on the rookeiy.

892

NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Leaving one of oiu' nmuber in camp, three of us start at half-past 7 p.m.
for the top of the cape, about a mile from oui- camp, taking our over-
coats, egging crooks, and a ' billy ' of tea, &c. In the sultry evening
it is vi'arm work trudging upvi^ard through the shoi-t, stiff herbage,
tripping now and agani in Mutton Bird holes in the twilight. Just
before 8 p.m. a few birds are seen circling swiftly about, and by the
time we reach our lialtiug-placo they are numerous, cutting the air in
all dnectious, some whizzing past close to our heads. When it is quite
dark nearly all the birds have landed and entered their biurow-horaes,
where, judging by the noise, warm congiatulations are being exchanged,
and, if I mistake not, warm lights arc going on, too, through ijirds
entering wrong bui-rows. The hubbub is kept up more or less through-
out the night. Many birds appear to sleep on the groimd. Some ;u-e
on the vidng all night, judging by the cries. The cry consists of three
rapid squeal-hke notes, followed by one note low-pitched, as if the breath
were diawn in. The notes are repeated three or four times.

We get on the lee side of an outcrop of rock and enjoy a nap for
two hours. When we awake it is shortly after midnight, and oui-
siu-roundings seem utterly sti-ange and weiid. The uudcrgi-omid
squeaking and the croaking noise made by the birds are unabated.
Far below we liear the wash of the sea on the reefs and foot rocks of
the cape. The half-moon is well up, and its Ught, piercing a bank of
clouds over the mainland, sheds a silvery sheen across the calm sea.
To the left hand is the flash of the distant Cape Schanck light. We
walk abroad. Birds scuttle to right and left from underneath the
tussocks as we pass along. One or two eggs are picked up on the
surface, evidently dropped in a hurry before the birds could reach their
nests. The most energetic member of our party commences in the
moonlight to rake eggs from the holes.

At about half-past 3 o'clock, or jitst as daylight is breaking, birds
begin to depart to seaward. We take up positions on the edge of the
cliff to witness this interesting leave-taking. Birds in ones or twos
waddle up, or sneak through the grass hke rats, then, spreading their
wings, take a short run and launch over the chff and disappear into the
gloom. Some on reaching the cliff pause for a minute or two, then wdth a
neat spring off the feet sail away. Others flounder along, striking a
tussock or some other obstacle before they get fairly on the vsdng.
Tliis performance ceases about 4 o'clock, when all the outgoing birds
have departed. There are only left the breeding birds in their burrows,
where all is hushed.

I break my egging crook over a large snake, and so can do no
egging. My companions each fill their baskets, and we return to camp
to breakfast on fried Mutton Birds' eggs and bacon.

After five days we brought an enjoyalsle and successful li-ip to a
close, having collected between forty and fifty dozen of eggs.

I have given an illustration of the " pig-fa<!c " weed rookciy on
PliilUp Island, Western Port, also a picture of a small rookery on
North-east Island, one of the Kent Group.

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NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 893

670. — PuFFiNus LEUCOMEi.AS, Temmiiick.
WHITE-FRONTED PETREL.

Re- fereiicc— Cat. Birds Brit. Miis., vol. xxv.. p. 370.

Geographical Dktrihution. — Seas of Queensland and possibly Nor-
thern Territoiy ; also the Moluccas, North Bonieo-, the Philippine
Islands, and northwards to the seas of Japan and Corca.

Ne.st and Egys. — Undescribed.

Ohxermtionst. — This Petrel first became an Australian species when
Mr. Cockerell collected it off the North-east coast. It is a fair-sized
bird (about nineteen inches in total length), has a general brown upper
surface, and entire under surface wliite.

671. — PuFFiNus GEisEus, Gmclin.
SOMBRE PETREL.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 386.

I'revious Descriptions of Eggs. — Buller : Birds of New Zealand (1S73),
also vol. ii., p. 233 (1S88).

Geographical Distribution. — Two skins in the British Museum are
marked Australia and New Zealand respectively. Generally distributed
thioughout the seas of both Hemispheres, from Faroe Islands in the
North Atlantic and the Kurilc Islands in the North Pacific to the
Strait of Magellan and the islands south of New Zealand.

Xest. — Usually a deep bmTow underground.

Eggs. — Clutch, one ; roimd oval in shape ; textiux' of shell somewhat
coarse ; sm-face minutely pitted and slightly glossy ; coloiu", pvu'e white,
but frequently more or less stained with dirt. Dimensions in inches:
2-65 X 2-0 ; according to Buller : 3-1 x 1-95.

Observations. — This Sombre-coloured Petrel resembles the Short-
tailed Petrel, or Mutton Bird, but is appreciably larger. Skins in the
British Museum arc marked "Australia." According to Sir Walter
Buller it is a common species in the New Zealand seas. It is compara-
tively plentiful on the Island of Kapiti, where it is found breeding as
late as March. On the Island of Karewa and on the Rurima Rocks
large numbers annually breed, sharing their burrows with the singular
Tuatara lizard, and submitting, season after season, to have their nests

894

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

robbed by the Maoris, who systematically visit the breeding grounds
when the young birds are sufficiently plump and fat for the calabash.

Sir Walter proceeds to state that " Mr. Kennedy infonns me that
when engaged on a survey of the Kaimanawa Ranges, his native work-
men caught numbers of these bii'ds m their burrows. On their first
arrival at the brcecUng gi'ound the yoimg birds were very small, but in
the month of April they had attained their full-size and were veritable
lumps of fat.

" It sometimes breeds in the hills at the back of Wellington, and
I once met with the bird on the coach road in the Nguaranga Gorge.

" There are some nesting grounds of this species on Whale Island,
in the Bay of Plenty. I visited these breeding places about the middle
of January, and found the nestlings still occupying their deep burrows,
but they were well gi'own, with black quills and tail feathers sprouting
vigorously through their thick downy mantle of slaty-gre)'.

" These birds are at all times more nocturnal than diurnal, and when
hovering overhead at night utter a frequent call-note, like ' tee-tee-tee,'
from which the Maori name is deiivcd.

" There are several well-known breeding places on the south-east
coast of Otago, and on Stewart Island. '

Years ago I received eggs of the Sombre Petrel from the late
Mr. T. H. Potts, and more recently (1896) I received an egg, together
with its parent, from Macquarie Island, where Mr. Joseph Burton
infonns me these birds breed in burrows under tussocks of gi'ass on
the mountain sides, laying he latter part of November.

672. — PuFFiNus GAViA, Forster.
FORSTER PETREL.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 381.

Previous Description of Eggs. — Reischek : Trans. New Zealand Inst.,
vol. xviii., p. 93 (1SS5).

Genciraphical Distribution. — Seas of New South Wales and South
Australia, and probably other parts of Australia, including Tasmania;
also New Zealand.

Ne.'yt. — A buiTow, 4 to 5 inches in diameter at the entrance and
1^ to 3 feet in length; the egg chamber at the terminus being IJ feet
broad by 1§ feet high, vrith a few leaves on the floor as a lining.
(Reischek). Like most Puffins, this species nests in colonics or rookeries,
their burrows, like a huge rabbit warren, covering many acres of ground.

Egr/s. — Clutch, one ; oval in shape, or more pointed at one end ;
texture of shell comparatively fine ; surface slightly glossy ; colour, pure
white. Dimen.sions in inches : 2'2 x 1'55.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTRAUAN BIRDS. 895

Observations. — Previous to the compilation of tlic Veniacular List
of the Australasian Association for the Advancement of Science, this
Peti-el's name did not appear on any Australian list. Specimens of the
Forster Petrel, taken off the AiLstralian eoiist, ;u-e in both the Sydney
and Adelaide Museums.

This Petrel is also found in New Zealand seas. Accorchug to
Sir Walter Buller, its habits are sociable, and flocks may often be
seen in the daytime disporting themselves in the sea, making short
fliglits just above the surface, then flopping into the water, splashing
and chasing one another in their playful gambols, and when tii-ed of
their fun, rising and rapidly chsappcaring from view in a compact body,
generally taking a zig-zag course, sliowing .simultaneously the dark
plumage of the upper sm"face, then the wliite cuider parts.

Whale Island is one of the favourite breeding grounds of the Forster
Petrel, the places selected being the stony scrub-covered slopes near
the summit, as well as the holes and crevices among the rocks far above
high-water mark. The adjacent little island of Notoki, Karewa Island,
in the Bay of Plenty, and the numerous islands in the Hauraki Gulf are
also nesting gi'ounds.

The egg in my collection, received from Mr. Edward P. Sealy, was
taken in the Bay of Islands, season 1896. This Petrel lays duiing
October, and in its natural economy much resembles the ordinary
Mutton Bird.

673. — Priofinus cinereus, Gmelin. — (626)
Fii/mfirus! t/elidus^ Gmelin.

BROWN PETREL.

Figure. — Gould; Birds of Australia, fol , vol. \ii , pi 47.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. x.w., p. 390.

Previous Description of Eggs. — *Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. ii., p. 447 (1865); Campbell: Victorian Naturalist

Gengraphical Distr Unit ion. — Seas of New South Wales, Victoria,
South and West Austraha, and Tasmania ; also New Zealand and
Southern Ocean in general.

Nesf. — (On Macquaine Island). — In burrows under tussock grass,
mostly high up on the mountain sides.

Hf/gs. — Clutch, one ; roundish or broad oval in shape ; texture of
shell close but somewhat coarse ; sm-face very slightly glossy ; colour,
pure wliite when first laid, but soon becomes soiled with brownish earthy
stains. Dimensions in inches : (1) 2-8 x 2-04 (2) 2-79 x 1-98
(3) 2-73 X 1-96.

*No dimensions given.

896

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Observations. — Tlie large Brown or Great Grey Petrel frequents the
southern seas, being most numerous between the 30tli and 55th degrees
of south latitude. Gould, on his voyage to and from Australia,
obtained many specimens of the bird. This makes it more inexplicable
why lus figure (" Birds of Australia,' folio, vol. vii., pi. 47) was not
coloiu-ed truer to life. The bird is made to appear gi'ey instead of
light-brown, and to possess a. yellowish culnien instead of dark horn-
coloiu'.

Gould remarked that the powers of flight of tliis fine sea-bird are
exceedingly great, and in flying over the ocean it often mounts higher
in the air than any other member of its group, and descends again with
tlie utmost eagerness to seize any fatty substance thrown overboard.
Its actions and flight differ slightly from those of the other Petrels, and
more resemble those of the Albatrosses.

The Brown Petrel is considered one of the best divers of its tribe.
Sometimes it poises in the air for a moment at the height of about
twenty-five feet above the water, and closing its wings takes a header
into the waves. However, under water the bird uses its wings much
in the same manner as when flying.

The eggs above described were collected on Macquarie Island, the
latter pai-t of November, 1896, by Mr. Joseph Burton, per favour of
Mr. Joseph Hatch, the lessee of the island. The eggs were acrompanied
by a skin of the bird. Macquarie Island is an exceedingly rough and
iTigged place, almost devoid of vegetation, situated 860 miles south-east
by south from Hobart. It is about twenty miles long by about seven
miles broad, its gi'eatest height being 1,300 feet above sea^level.

During an interesting conversation with Mr. Bui'ton, after his i-etum
from Maxquarie Island, where he remained 3i years, he infonued me
that Bi-o^vn Petrels generally appear in niunbers after the middle or
toiwards the end of August (he noted one bird as early as thei 12tli of
that month), and depart about the end of May. Fresh eggs may be
collected the end of November or beginning of December, but, strange
to say, in March and April (1900) some fresh eggs were observed in the
Fjurrows.

The burrows are in great numbers on the hill sides, from sea-level
up to about 400 or 500 feet, and extend on an average four or five feet
in the soft soih the nesting chamber being sparingly lined with portions
of tussock gra,ss. The biUTOw apparently always extends a> little beyond
the nesting chamber, because, if a sitting bird were disturbed, it usually
got out of reach by mo\nng fui-ther in. If a biUTOw be in use, a few
blades of tussock gi-ass will be noticed in the entrance.

The birds generally go to sea at day-light, wliich, on account of the
latitude, occurs there about 2 o'clock in mid-summer, retimiing about
du.sk (10 p.m.) ; but, just before laying season, usually two birds- (presum-
ably a mated pair) were found in tlic burrows (hu-ing the day.

Tlie call of the Brown Petrel, when flying, is a single wliistlo-like ciy.
In the burrows they coo like Prions, only, of coui-se, louder,

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 897

674.- -Priocella GLACiALoiDES, Smith. — (639)
SILVER-GREY PETREL.

1 igurt-. — GouJ'J : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 48.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 393.

Geographical Didrihutvin. — Seas of South Queensland, New South
Wales, Victoria, South and West Australia, and Tasmania; also New
Zealand and Southern Ocean in general, northward along the west coast
of America to Washington Territory.

2\eit and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Ohiervntiotn. — The delicately-coloiu-ed Silver-grey Petrel belongs
chiefly to southern latitudes. During his passage to and from Australia,
Gould obsei'ved numerous examples. One of the first he possessed was
captured by a hook and Hne, and afTorded Mrs. Gould an opportunity
of making a beautiful drawing from life.

It is stated that a specimen of this Petrel was obtained on Tristan
d'Acunha by Von Willemoes Sulim ; if so, it possibly breeds there.
The bird flies as far south as the edge of the pack ice.

It may be here stated that out of the thirty-eight members of the
Great Petrel family on the Australian list, the eggs of seven, including
the above, have yet to be described.

In connection with the avifauna of Kerguelen Island, Dr. Shai-pe
wi-ites : " None of the recent expeditions (Transit of Venus, 1874)
seemed to have obtained it, but John Munn's narrative states that
this species ' was used when yovmg by our party as food, and our supplies
were obtained by digging the young birds from the buiTows in the sand
or tussock bank on the lee of the S.E. side of the island. Tlie bird was
known and eaten bv us under the name of the White Night Hawk.' "

675. — Mataqueus .equinoctialis, Linnaeus. — (625)
F itlmarus coinipinlJafii.t. Gould.

SPECTACLED PETREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 46.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 395.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — .Saunders: Trans. Roy. Soc, vol.
clxviii . p. 164 (1878): Kidder and Coues :' Smithsonian
Miscell. Coll., vol xiii , p. 13 (1878); Hall: Ibis. p. 22 (igoo).

Geographical Bifstrihufion. — Seas of New South Wales and Tas-
mania ; also Southern Ocean in general ; north, to about 30 deg. south
latitude.
57

SgS

NESTS AND EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Nest. — A very deep buiTow, generally under a mound of herbage
in a hill side. Near the entrance to the burrow there is usually a small
pool of fresh water (Kidder and Coues). The nest (proper) is built of
mud and pieces of plants arranged in the form of an inverted saucer,
3 or 4 inches high, slightly hollowed out at the top. A space is left
between its base and the sides of the nesting chamber (Eaton).

Eggs. — Clutch, one ; elongate in fonn or lengthened oval ; textui'e
of shell coai-se ; siu'face slightly glossy ; colour, piu'e white, which soon
becomes soiled by dirt in the nest. The heavy or muslry odoiu" present
more or less on all Petrels' eggs is exceedingly pronounced in this
instance. Dimensions in inches of examples from Kerguelen Island :
(1; 3-46 X 2-14, (2) 3-24 x 2-05.

Ohfervafions. — Tliis large, dark-coloured Petrel, with conspicuous
white markings about its face, is a flyer over the southern seas, and has
been noted off New South Wales and Tasmania. There has been a
little difficulty about detennining the species on account of the variation
in some indi\'iduals of the facial markings, especially under the chin.
The bird is sometimes called the White-chinned Petrel. On account of
the rank odour emitted by the bird it is also called the " Stinker "
by whalers.

The Rev. A. E. Eaton, who accompanied the British Transit or
Venus Expedition to Kerguelen Island, 1874-5, states, with reference
to the Spectacled or White-chinned Petrel : " In Kerguelen Island a
hole similar to a deserted rabbits' earth, excavated in wet ground, with
water standing (in early summer) an inch or two deep within the
entrance, especially if it is in a slope near the sea, may be regarded as
a burrow most likely to be that of a White-cliinned Petrel. If it is
occupied by the birds there will probably be some green shoots of
Acana, clipped off from plants near its mouth, dropped by them in the
water. During the season, when the birds are pairing, before their
egg is laid, they make an extraordinaiy cackle in the nest chamber ;
the sound of approaching footsteps, or a thump upon the gi-ound some
distance away from the nest, and even a shout at the mouth of the
burrow, will cause them to commence in the daytime. During the night
this call is uttered by the female sitting on her nest or in the entrance
of the tunnel, and she can be heard at a distance of a quarter-of-a-milo
when there is a calm. Much trouble may be saved in digging out the
nest by sounding with a spade along the course of the burrow until the
situation of the nest^chambcr is ascertained. This is spherical and
tolerably large. Being in most instances near the ground, care must
be taken in the removal of its roof, or the bird's back may be broken
by the spade while she is sitting upon her ogi^s!^. As soon as the chamber
is laid open it is well to catch the hen by her beak and drag her out
of the hole while she is still dazzled by the light, giving her no time to
use her claws. On being released .she usually makes no attempt to
fly, unless she is purposely chased down the hill ; but after waddling
away a few yards .she returns to her buiTow (or to where its entrance
used to be before it was dug into .nnd choked with rinds) and begins at

NESTS AND EGGS OF Al'STRALIAN BIRDS. 899

onco to dig her way into the tunnel through the obstrvictions witli
which it has been blocked up. She takes little notice of bystanders
so long as they remain still, passing leisurely by them or even over their
feet if they happen to be in her way. . . . Some birds had
no white patch imder their chin : when it was present it varied in extent
in different examples. In most instances it formed a small triangular
blotch, occupying tlie apical portion of the angle enclosed by the lower
mandible, but in a few cases the white was limited to one or two
feathers only. In none of the Kerguelen specimens did the patch
extend to the forehead, as it does in the birds from Australia."

During the American expedition to the same locahty a single speci-
men of the Spectacled Petrel was dug out by a dog, on the 12th October,
from a very deep bun'ow under a clump of hei-bage, but no others were
observed until 15th November, when they suddenly appeared in the
daytime in considerable numbers. On the 16th December, Dr. Kidder
dug up specimens, with eggs, and frequently thereafter. The birds
nested in very deep biUTows, with almost always a little pool of water
at their entrance, and kept up an incessant squealing while the dog was
digging for them, very like the sound of a water-whistle toy. They
fought the dog more bravely than other Petrels, generally coming out
of the burrow hanging to his ear, and keeping him off very successfully
in the open.

Diu-ing Mr. Hans Gimderscn's oiling visit to Kerguelen, Mr. Robert
Hall found most of tlie eggs of the Spectacled Petrel much incubated
by the end of January (1898), while some nests contained young.
Nevertheless, a few fresh eggs were seciu'ed early in February.

676. — Majaqueus PAnKiKS:!Ni, Gray.
BLACK PETREL.

Figure. — Cat. Birds Brit, Mus., vol. xxv., pi. s-

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 39;.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Huttnn : Trans. New Zealand Inst.,
vol. iii., p. Ill (1871) ; Buller : Birds of New Zealand (1873),
also vol. ii., p. 244 (188S) ; Reischek : Trans. New Zealand
Tn=t., vol. xviii., p. 87 (18S5).

Gerigrajihicnl Di^frihiifion. — Seas of New South Wales, Victoria
(probably), and Tasmania ; also New Zealand.

Nest. — A biuTow, sometimes in loose soil and other times under
roots of trees or under stones, on islands and in mountains inland in
certain parts of the North Island of New Zealand.

Eggx. — Clutch, one ; broad oval in shape ; texture of shell coarse ;
surface glossy; colour, pure white. Dimensions in inches: 2-83 x 1-97;
according to Buller : 2-7 x 20.

goo XESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Observations. — Although the Black Petrel has been recorded off
the coast of New South Wales and Tasmania, it is more peculiar to
New Zealand seas. It is veiy similar to the Spectacled Petrel, but
smaller.

According to Sir Walter Buller, it resorts to Little Banier and
adjacent islands to breed in colonies. It also resorts for that purpose
to the top of low moiuitains far removed from the sea. The Maoris
soon discover their breeding places, and not only collect the yoimg, but
capture large nimibers of the old birds by lighting fires on calm nights
(for the birds are nocturaal), and thus decoying them to theii" destniction.

Mr. Cheeseman informed Sir Walter Buller that the Black Petrel
also breeds on the coast ranges north of Manukau and on the Cape
Colville Peninsula, also on the small islets off the eastern shore.

I cannot do better tlian quote Mr. A. Reischek's original and
interesting obsei-vations — which were extended over many seasons —
on the Black, or, as he calls it, the Brown Petrel ^Procellaria j^arJcin-
■wni). He states: "These birds are found roiuid the coast of New
Zealand ; I have seen them over a hundred miles from land, cruising
about in a similar manner to, and in company ^ith, the Albatross
(Diomedea eTulans), but they never go near enough to a vessel to be
caught, nor do thcv pick up the food thrown overboard, as the Albatross
does. Tliis Petrel is gi'egarioxis, and I have seen them in large flocks
together, resting on the water. Their power of flight is mai-vellous.
In July. 1879, outside the Kaipara, on the west coast of North New
Zealand, I had an opportunity of obsei-ving these birds, having to lay-bj'
outside the bar for several days, being imable to enter, as it was blowing
one of the severest gales experienced in these seas. Tliey cruised
about, dipping the points of their wings at intei-vals in the water, then
suddenly swooping down through the foaming waves for their prey ;
rising with the next wave and repeating their former action. From
Juh^ to November these birds are alwa3's out at sea. In November
they come ashore to their breeding places, on the top of high and steep
mountains, which thev choose for the pui^pose of easier flight, as thev
have difficultv in ascending from the level ground.

" They are expert climbers : I saw them, bv the aid of their shar]>
claws, their bills and wings, climbing up trees out of the perpendicular,
from whence they flew away. In November, 1882, on the eastern
slope, and near the centre of the Little Barrier or Hauturu Island,
situated north of Auckland, at about 2,300 feet above sea-level, on a
steep precipitous ridgo. I noticed my dog repeatedly setting at burrows,
which, on exami'iation, I found contained Prnrellnria parl-insnni ; they
wore cleaning out their old bun'ows ; and staving to observe, I noticed
them digging with their bills, removing the earth by a backward motion
of their feet, till the burrow was cleansed. In most cases I foimd them
working, in others the bun'ows were clean and the refuse outside, some
bun-ows in loose soil, others imder the roots of trees and imdcr stones,
also in hollow trees. I have found them sometimes verv far inland,
always on the tops of mountains.

"In December, 1884, on the Waitakerei Ranges, 1,000 feet above
sea-level, and twelve miles from the ocean, I found the female sitting

NESTS A.VD ECUS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

yoi

on an egg, nearly hatclicd. I nio;i*ui'ed several burrows of these birds :
tlic ouLrauce was from 6 to TJ inches in diameter, the depth from lA to
2i feet, and the height about a foot. When they have finished cleaning
out tlie bun-ows, which process male and female accomphsh together,
they remain quietly until the last rays of the sun have disappeared,
then anyone can hear them call, which is similar to the Black Swan
(Chenupis at rata), and, on coming out, they stop a moment, pick up
a few leaves or gi'ass and go back into the burrows ; this they repeat
several times, and always on entering the chamber they make a peculiar
noise together. After dark both come out, rise and cii'cle round,
calling until they attract others, and when a large flock is assembled
they fly away to their haimts on the ocean, retui-ning before daylight.
At tliis season, before they lay, they are very fat. When caught, on
their return from the ocean, if they cannot protect themselves by
scratching and biting, they expectorate a lot of oily matter on their
assailant. The fii-st time I caught one of these birds it treated me in
tliis manner. As soon as they have finished building their careless
nest, which is a deepening in the chamber, with a few leaves in it, the
female lays one white egg, about the size of that produced by a Brahma
fowl. When the female lays, the male separates from her during the
day, wliile she is hatching, and remains in a separate burrow of his
own not far away. The first egg of the Procellaria parkinsoni I found
on the 28th November, 1882, at the Little Bai-rier. After this date
I found and examined several, but never found more than one egg or
young in a nest, and the female always sitting on the egg.

" I watched these birds by moonlight, and have seen the male come
out of his biuTow and fly away ; returning after a time, and circUng
round in the air, he swooped down to the bun-ow of the female,
striking the ground with a force that could be heard some distance.
He stood outside a little, then entered, and I heard a whimpering noise.
After this a bird came out and flew away, returning after a time to the
same burrow and in a few minutes once again emerged and flew away ;
but returned before daylight, and using the same precaution on entering
as before. Then one bird came out and went to the second burrow.
I examined the burrow where this process was going on, and on putting
my hand in it was severely bitten, which was repeated on my trying to
lay hold of the bird, wliich di'ew back into the chamber. So I dug with
a tomahawk till I reached where the bird was sitting, and tried to take
the egg from imder it, wliich I partially succeeded in doing, when I was
again so severely bitten that I had to let it go. As soon as I did so
the bird with its bill rolled it back agam into the nest. I protected
my hand and then took the egg, wliich was quite fresh. My dog went
to the birdj whicli attacked him fm-iously. On examination I foiuid
this was a female. I then went to the other burrow where I saw the
bird go in. This bird defended itself in the same plucky manner.
There was no egg in this chamber, and on examination I foimd this
bird was a male. About the end of December I found a female in a
burrow, with one small chick covered with gi-ey down, which she
defended furiously. I have also found very young birds in Januai-y,
even as late as April. As soon as the young birds are a few days old,

902

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

the parents leave them in the biuTow from before sunrise until after
sunset, while they go to seek food. On their return they circle round
their burrow as before, stopping at the entrance to call, which the
young bu'ds immediately answer. .After entering, they make a
whimpering noise. The old birds leave and return several times in a
night. Once or twice only have I foimd adult bii'ds in the burrow
during the day, when they had their young : the reason being that,
not having left the burrow before dayhght, they are afraid to leave
till evening. If they iind their burrows disturbed they will not go in.
" The natives are vei-y careful when taking the young ' Taikos not
to disturb the burrows. They make expeditions in May to the islands
whei'e these Petrels are breeding. In former times each tribe had
their grounds, which they visited every year, and defended obstinately
against the intruder. The birds were taken out with a flexible stick,
pointed at one end and spht, wliich they pushed into the burrow till
the bird was felt, when they twisted the stick round in the down and
puUcd out the bird gently, then bit the head to kill it. Tliey then took
the bird's bill to cut the skin imder the crop, and pulled out the oil-bag,
which was thrown away, as the oil would spoil the Uesh for food. They
pluck each bird as they get it, and when a lai-ge niunber are ob-
tained, caiTy them to the camp, where they singe the down off over a
fire; then they roast the bird until the fat is extracted, and, placing
them in a vessel made of totara bark, they cover them with the fat to
keep them air-tight. When presei-ved in this manner they keep a length
of time. I saw the natives very often preserving them during my
reseaixhes in the King Countiy, beginning of 1882, and have eaten and
found them excellent. If the natives disturb any of the Petrels'
burrows, they always restore them. These birds, which were very
numerous on the Little Barrier Island dming the breeding season,
I foimd on my last visit (Ai^ril and May, 1885) had become veiy scarce,
but I found the remains of many which pig and dogs had destroyed. '

677. — CEsTRELATA MACKoPTEHA, Suiitli. — (627 aud 628)
Pterudroma atlantica, Gould.

GREAT-WINGED PETREL.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. x.w., p. 399.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — BuUer : Birds of New Zealand (1873),
also vol. ii., p. 246 (1888); Reischek : Trans. New Zealand
Inst., vol. xviii., p. 90 (1885) ; Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
(1889).

GeM/rnphical Distrihution. — Seas of New South Wales, Victoria
(probably), aud Tasmania; also New Zealand and Southern Ocean in
general.

Xesl. — A hole or biu-row, usually at the base of a cliff. In com-
panies, sometimes four or five pairs of birds having nests witliin the

NESTS AND EGGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 903

samo cavern, each nest being placed at the end of a separate burrow,
having a vaiying length, with an ovai chamber at tlie I'lu-tlier end.
These biurows are generally about tlii-ee feet in extent (one, however,
measiued foui-), ;uid the nest or egg chamber is decidedly smaller than
that usually fomied by the Black Petrel (M. p<irl;iiisoni), and has a few
diy kaves on the floor (Billler).

The buiTOWs are from lA to 4 feet apart; the entrance 6 to 10
inches in diameter; the passage (usually winding) in most cases '1 to 4
feet in length. Tlie egg chamber is from 1^ to 2 feet wide, and from
i to 1 foot in height (Reischek).

Eygs. — Clutch, one; roimdish oval in shape; texture of shell some-
what coai'se ; surface has faint trace of gloss and is minutely pitted,
especially at the smaller end ; colour, pure wliite. Dimensions in inches
of examples from Cape Maria Van Diemen (New Zealand) ; (1) 2-7 x 1'9,
(2) 2-6 X l-9o, (3) 2-6 X 1-9.

Observations. — This Southern Ocean flyer is at once distinguished
by its gi'eat Swift-like wings, and is therefore well named on that
account.

Gould considered a bird he killed in the Tasmanian seas (where
they are tolerably abundant), because of its larger size, longer wings,
and gi-eyer face, to be different from the Atlantic Petrel ; but more
recent investigations have proved the two birds to be identical. The
bird has also been called CE. ijuuldi by New Zealand authors.

According to Sir Walter Buller, Eeischek found the Great-winged,
or Gould Petrel, all rovmd the Little Barrier Island. This Petrel is
also said to breed sixty miles inland from Opotild, in a range of moun-
tains, and in large numbers on the island of Ivarewa, in the Bay of
Plenty, on Whale Island, and other small islands off the east coast,
on several small islands in Hauraki Gulf, and on the coast line north of
the Manukau.

The examples of eggs in my own collection were taken July, 1886,
at Cape Maria Van Diemen- by the lighthouse keeper.

Mr. A. Reischek's interesting field observations of the Great-winged
Petrel are : " These Petrels are common on the coast of New Zealand.
I saw them in large flocks out at sea, where they remain from March
till August; in the latter month they come ashore to their old breeding
places, which they use annually as long as they are not molested.
These birds breed in colonies ; their btuTows are sometimes very close
to one another; on the Little Bai-rier Island (or Hautvuii Island),
I measured a piece of gi'ound tliirty-six feet in circumference in the
centre of wliich were six burrows. Their breeding resorts are always
on the cliffs along the coast — and some are very difficult to approach —
dug out by these Petrels even in hard sandy fonnation or clay. In
August male and female begin to clean out their old biuTows or dig
fresh ones, if the former have been disturbed, in a similar manner to
the Procdlaria parkinsoni. In the beginning of September the female
lays one white egg, the size of that of a common fowl ; they very seldom
lay two eggs. The female hatches the egg, the male roams about the

904

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ocean in tlie daytime — sometimes I found them ashore in a separate
burrow from that of the female.

" After sunset thick clouds of these Petrels swarm round the cUffs,
uttering the melancholy soimd ' ohi ! ohi ! ' from which the natives name
it ' Ohi.' Each one circles round its burrow several times before it goes
down to it ; then they stop for a moment before entering. These birds
go to and from their burrows several times a night. When the young
is hatched, the female stops for a few days with her cliick in the
burrow; after that both parents leave evtry morning before sumise,
and fly to their haunts on the ocean. Returning after sunset they
circle round their burrows, then swoop down to the entrance and call :
when answered by the young bird they enter. If both birds come to
the burrow together, one stops outside until the other reappears.
When feccUng the young they make a whimpering noise. Male and
female rear the young together and defend them; but they are not so
vicious as Parkinson's Petrel. In February the young are full-giown
and very fat ; the natives go to collect and presei-ve them in tlic same
manner as I have ah-eady described in a fonner paper.'

678. — Q^.STRELATA LEssoNi, Ganiot. — (630)
Procellaria Itucocephala, Forster.

WHITE-HEADED PETREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 49.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 401.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Saunders: Trans. Roy. Soc, vol.
clxviii., p. 164 (1878); Hall: Ibis, p. 24 (igoo).

Geographical Dktrihutiun. — Seas of Australia (except, possibly.
North), and Tasmania; also New Zealand and South Indian Ocean.

Nes^t. — Externally a rabbit-like burrow, with the entrance generally
sparsely bestrewn with green shoots of vegetation. The ttmnel is short
and the large terminal chamber contains no special nest. (Eaton), save a
few gathered soft fibres and an occasional feather (Hall).

J^'Jil'^- — '>-'liiteh, one ; inclined to oval in shape ; texture of shell
comparatively fine; .siu-face glossy; coloiu", dull white. Dimensions in
inches of examples from Kerguelen Island : (1) 2-8 x 1-89, {'1) 2-75 x 2-03,
(3) 2-7 X 1-96. The pair of eggs I previously described as E. lexsoni was
referable, as I aftei-wards ascertained, to Qi. rostrata (Peale Petrel), and
was taken on the Uen Islands, Now Caledonia, January, 1879. They
may bo described thus: shape, elliptically inclined; texture compara-
tively fine; surface slightly glos.sy ; colom-' pure white. Dimensions in
inches: (1) 2-55 x 1-7, (2) 2-45 x 1-63.

Ohservations. — Gould gives an interesting note of the capture of
his first fine White-headed Petrel, which is worth quoting. He says: —

N£STS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. y05

" While eugagcd in watching the movements of the several species of
tho gi-eat lamily of I'rocdlariida., which at one time often and often
surrounded the ships that conveyed me round the world, a blight speck
would appear on the disUut horizon, and, gi-adually approaching nearer
and nearer, at length assumed the form of the White-headed Petrel,
wliose wing powers fai' exceed those of any of its congeners; at one
moment it would be rising high in the au', at the next sweeping, comet-
hke, through the flocks flying around, never, however, approaching the
sliip sufficiently near for a successful shot, and it was equally waiy in
avoiding the boat with which I was frequently favoured for the purpose
of securing, examples of other species. But, to make use of a famihar
adage, ' the most knowing are taken in at last.' One beautiful morning,
on the 20th Febmary, 1839, diuing my passage from Hobart Town to
Sydney, when the sea was perfectly calm and of a glassy smoothness,
tills wanderer of the ocean came in sight ajid approached within three
hundred yards of the vessel. Anxious to attract him still closer, so as
to biiug him within range, I thought of the following stratagem; —
A corked bottle, attached to a long line, was thrown overboard and
allowed to di'ift to the distance of forty or fifty yards, and kept there
until the bii-d favoured us with another visit while flying round immense
circles. At length his keen eye caught sight of the neck of the bottle
(to which a bobbing motion was communicated by sudden jerks of the
string), and he at once proceeded to examine more closely what it was
that had arrested liis attention ; during this momentary pause the
trigger was pulled, the boat lowered, and the bird was soon in my
possession."

The White-headed Petrel breeds somewhat eaiiy, for, duiing the
American Transit of Venus Expedition to Kerguelen, 1874-5, young,
supposed to be referable to tliis species, were found on the 15th Sep-
tember li\'ing in deep buiTows in the hill sides. The Rev. Mr. Eaton
furnishes no dates when he took eggs, but gives the following interesting
information : " In Captain Hutton's paper before referred to, allusion
is made to an undetermined species of Petrel, to which the euphonious
sobriquet Procellaria diahuUca has been applied. It was said to be
a bird inhabiting Desolation Island, which flew about at night, utteiing
imeartlily shrieks. There are good reasons for supposing the sprite
to be Lesson's Petrel. It is difficult to describe the cry of this bird.
For a long time there was no fincUng out which of the Petrels gave
utterance during its flight to its wekd sounds. Whenever its cry was
heard, I went out with a lantern to endeavour to get a sight of the
bird, but without success. At last, near Thumb Peak, we dug out some
large birds whose outcries, when caught by the beak, plainly identified
them beyond all question with t£'. lesson i.

'■ The biuTow of this Petrel can be recognised externally by its
being about as large as an ordinary rabbit's hole, and dry, and by its
entrance being generally sparsely bestrewn with gi'een shoots of Accena.
It is usually excavated in Azorella, the tunnel is short, the large ter-
minal chamber contains no special nest, and when the hand is cautiously
introduced to feel after the e^g, it is promptly and severely bitten by
the old bird. It is therefore well to take the precaution of dragging

go6

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

her forth from the interior before an attempt is made to seciu-e the ^.^^g.
Her removal can be easily ellected. While she is stooping forward
at the entrance of the ncst-chamber looking out in readiness to bite,
a piece of stick is presented to her, whicli she seizes instantly, and
whilst it is being shaken to make her hold it fast, her beak is suddenly
grasped with the hand, and she is drawn up by it out of the buiTow,
shrieking loudly. Care must meanwhile be taken to prevent her from
thrusting her claws into the hand. Nests were found from the extreme
confines of the sea-shore to an altitude of about 300 feet above the
mean level. They were common amongst Azorella at the foot of the
cliffs near Thumb Peak; and on the siunmit of the lower terraces;
also in the hills near the Swain's Harbour Transit Station. There
were also some nests near the principal station on a slope by a fresh
water lake on the landward side of the hill."

Diu'ing Mr. Hans Gundei-sen's (of Melbourne) oiling enterprise to
Kergueleu, between the dates of 28th December and 28th Januaiy,
Mr. Robt. Hall examined nine nests, the eggs of which contained well-
developed embryos. On the 29th January he imeartlied two veiy young
buds, one being attended by its parent. But a few days later he pro-
cured an egg that was tolerably fresh. It was observed that both parents
took paa-t in incubation during daytime.

679. CESTKELATA MOLLIS, Gould. (631)

SOFT-PLUMAGED PETREL.

Figuri:. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 50.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 406.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883), also Nests and Eggs Austn. Birds, pi. 3, fig. 631 (1883).

Gi^uyra pineal Distrihution. — East and possibly other coasts of Au.s-
fcralia and Tasmania ; also New Zealand and South Seas, more particularly
South Atlantic and South Indian Oceans, between 20 dcg and 50 deg.
south latitudes.

Nest. — The usual rabbit-liko burrow.

Eggs. — Clutch, one ; inclined to oval in shape ; texture of shell
somewhat coarse ; surface slightly glossy, with sometimes limy nodules
on the smaller end ; colour, pure white. Dimensions in inches :
2-39 X 1-67.

Observations. — Although a frequenter of the South seas, tlic beauti-
ful Soft-plumaged Petrel also loves milder waters. It was the first
large Petrel Gould saw after crossing the line on his voyage to
Australia. He relates a curious incident about this particular bird,
which reads: "The weather being too boisterous to admit of a boat

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. goy

being lowered, 1 eudeavourcd to capture the bird wth a hook and hue ;
and the ordinaiy sea.-liooks being too lai'gc for the puipose, I was in
the act of selecting one from my stock of salmon-flies, when a sudden
gust of wind blew my hooks and a piece of parchment ten inches long
by six inches wide, between which they were placed, overboard into the
sea, and I was obliged to give up the attempt for that day. On the
next I succeeded in capturing a bird with a hook I had still left, and
the reader may judge of my surprise when ou opening the stomach
I there found the piece of parchment, softened by the action of the
salt water and the animal juices to which it had been subjected, but so
completely uninjured that it was dried and again restored to its original
use when a further supph' of flies could be procured.

An egg of the Soft-plumaged Petrel in my collection was taken on
Mount Moa, New Caledonia, and was kindly forwarded to me by
Mr. E. L. Layard, then Biitish Consul at that island.

680. tEsTKELATA SOLANDRl, Gould. (629)

BROWN-HEADED PETREL.

Rejerence. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 410.

Geographical Disfrihutiun. — Seas of South Queensland, New South
Wales, Victoria, South and West AustraHa, and Tasmania.

Nest and Egc/is. — Undescribed.

Observations. — The Brown-headed, or Solander, Petrel has been
recorded for all Au-tralian seas except north and north-west. However,
most probably it is found off the latter coast.

Gould procured his type in Bass Strait, 13th March, 1839. So long
ago ! yet nothing is known of its breeding quarters. When they are
discovered, they may prove to be high land of some verdure-clad island
of the wai-m Pacific, and not the usual Petrel abode — a bleak island of
the south.

681. CESTRELATA LEUCOPTERA, Gould. (632)

WHITE-WINGED PETREL.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, foL, vol. vii., pi. 51,
Referenci. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 416.

Geoffraphica/ Distribution. — Seas of South Queensland, New South
Wales, Victoria, South and West Australia, and Tasmania. Some
authorities give east coast only of Australia.

Qo8 NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTHALIAN BIRDS.

Xest and Eggs. — Undesci-ibed.

Observations. — Although the Wliite-winged Petrel is closely allied
to the Cook Petrel, the best authorities agi-ee that these two delicately
formed bu-ds are distinct. Gould says : — " On comparing the specimens
of both' I find that my bird (leucoptera), which was obtained while
breeding on Cabbage Tree Island, at the mouth of Port Stepliens, has a
shorter and much stouter bill, a much darker head, neck, and upper
surface, and a uniform coloiu^ed tail, whereas Mi'. Gray's (E. cooL-i has
the inner webs of the outer tail feathers snow-white."

He further states that the White-winged Petrel breeds in abundaJice
on Cabbage Tree Island. In aU probability it does not breed there

682. — Q'vSTRELATA GooKi, G. R. Gray. — (633)
COOK PETREL.

Hefereiice. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 417.

Previous Descriplions of Eggs. — Reischek : Trans. New Zealand Inst.,
vol. xviii., p. 92 (1885); Duller: Birds of New Zealand, vol.
ii., p. 218 (1888).

Geographical Distribution. — Seas of Queensland and New South
Wales; also New Zealand.

Nest. — A lengthened and tortuous subterranean burrow from 3 to 8
feet in length. (For details see " Obsei-vations.')

Egi/s. — Clutch, one ; broadly ovoido-clliptical ; stu-face smootli but
not glossy ; coloiu', perfectly white. Dimensions in inches : (1) 2-1 x TS,
(2) 1-9 X 1-5 (Buller).

Obsermtinns. — This delicate Petrel was first discovered off the New
Zealand coast, duiing the voyage of the " Erebus " and " Ten-or," and
was named by G. R. Gray after the immortal navigator, Cook.

It is interesting to leam that the eggs of this beautiful bird have
been found on islands off the north coast of New Zealand.

Again I give for this Petrel Mr. A. Reischck's own observations,
which appear to have been taken in a very methodical manner diuing
his different collecting excursions : " This pretty little Petrel is not so
common as the previous species (M. pnrhinxoni and (E. maeropiera),
according to Sir Walter Buller ; there have been only a few specimens
obtained, and VC17 little is known of their habits, but I have succeeded
in observing them carefully. The first time I met with this bird was
in December, 1880, on my second research at the Chickens on Morotiri
Islands, on the western slope of the larger island, along willi the
Tuatara Lizard (Sphenodon jtunrlatum), in one burrow. On the north-

NESTS A\D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. goQ

eastern portion, near the centi-e of Little Ban-ier, or Haiituni Island,
in October, 1882, my dog set a biuTow; and on digging into it, I was
sui-prised at finding a pair of these Petrels also on this island. They
came ashore to clean out their burrows, which process is accomphshed
with their bill and feet, as I have already described in a previous
paper. I measured several of their burrows, and found the average
width at the entrance from foiu' inches to six inches in diameter, and from
four to eight and even twelve feet from the entrance to the chamber,
of which I alwaj-s found two in each biUTow, from six inches to a foot
high. In each chamber is a hollow filled with leaves, moss, or fine
grass. I found these buiTows even in the stiSest clay, winding about
roots and stones. I often worked half-a-day and then had to give it up
without success. Male and female mutually assist at cleaning out or
making fresh bun'ows. After sunset they begin to call hke ' ti, ti, ti,'
repeated rapidly, which is the signal to assemble for their departure to
theii" ocean haimts, from which they do not retiu'n till before suiuise.
This process goes on nightly till their burrows are cleaned out and the
nest made. I built a hut in the centre of the Little Barrier, near one
of these burrows, on piu-jiose to make a close observation of these rare
birds. Tlie 1st November, when they returned as usual, early in the
morning, I noticed that they made a pecuUar noise in their biu-rows ;
in about half-an-hour one came out and stopped for a moment, then
flew away, and did not return till after simset, when he flew several
times round above the burrow, then went off again, not retiu-ning till
the next night, when he went into the burrow and made the same
gurgling noise as before ; after a while a bird came out and flew away,
which returned before siuirise and went into the burrow. After some
time one came out and again flew away. I then examined a burrow,
and found a bird sitting on an egg; on dissecting the bird I foimd it
was a female. I never found more than one egg, and always the female
sitting on it ; the male I have found not far off in a burrow by himself.
Wlien the yoimg are hatched, male and female rear them together and
defend them pluckily. The young are full-grown in March."

SUB-F.\MILY FULM.^RIN^ : FuLMARS.

683. — OssiFR.^GA GiGANTEA, Gmeliu, (624)

GIANT PETREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 45.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus;, vol. xxv., p. 422.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Layard ; Kidder and Coues : Smith-
sonian Miscell. Coll., vol. xiii., p. (1878) ; Buller : Birds
of New Zealand, vol. ii., p. 227 (1888); Verrill : Trans.
Connect. Ac, vol. ix., p. (1895).

Geographirnl Distrihution. — Seas of New South Wales, Victoria,
South and West Australia, and Tasmania; also New Zealand and
Sovithern Ocean in general ; north to about 30 deg. south latitude.

nio NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

JS^est. — A hollow scooped in the ground, containing a few stems of
grass, or constructed of gi-ass, moss, and earth- separate or in small
rookeries on the open grovuid of hills on desolate islands of the .south.

Eggs. — Clutch, one ; inclined to an elUpse in form ; textiu"e of shell
exceedingly coarse and granulated ; sui'face rough, in some instances
with lini}' nodules, and glossless ; colour, dull or dirty white. Dimensions
in inches : (1) 4-02 x 2-6, (2) 3-97 x 2-62.

Observations. — Tliis great Petrel in size and colour resembles the
Sooty Albatross, and also sweeps the Southern Ocean, including, of
course, Australian seas up to about latitude 30 deg. south. Its flight
is not so graceful and buoyant as the Albati'osses'.

It is the " Nelly " or " Stink-pot " of the whalers, and is a vora-
cious creature, hovering over sealers when engaged cutting up seals,
and devomnng the carcase the moment it is left. It also readily kills
other sea-birds — Prions, GullSj &c.

Occasionally there are albinos ; one followed the vessel Gould was
in for three weeks, between the Cape of Good Hope and Tasmania.

A note, brief, but to the point, from Mr. G. Beddoes, Abrolhos
Islands, off Western Australia, states : " Big Black Petrels are about
every winter. They are clumsy birds, and so tame or tired when they
reach us that we can go out in a boat and catch them. They are nearly
as large as an Albatross and smell worse than twenty of them."

According to Professor F. W. Hutton, C.M.Z.S., the Giant Petrel
breeds on the cliffs of Prince Edward Islands and Kerguclon's Land,
where its nests can be got at occasionally. The young are first covered
with a beautiful long light-gi-cyish down ; when fledged they are dark-
brown, mottled with white. When a person approaches a nest the old
birds keep a short distance away, while the young ones squirt a horribly
smelUng oil out of their mouths to a distance of six or eight feet. In
addition to Kerguelen, Captain Cook found the Giant Petrels very
abundant on Christmas Island, where, dviring the breeding season, his
sailors knocked the birds down with sticks. Falkland Islands are said
to be another breeding place of the Giant Petrel.

This bird is also found at Gough Island and South Georgia. In
Mr. Verrill's article, Mr. George Comer writes : " The ' Nellies ' are the
same at all the islands. These birds are grey, though when young they
are almost black. As they grow older they become lighter, and once
in a gi'eat while one will be seen pure white, which is, by whalers
considered a sure sign of a storm. They lay separately in open land or
knolls. The nests are low and built of grass and moss. Tlicy commence
laying (at Gough Island) the middle of September. They lay one egg,
which is usually quite rough, but, if robbed, will lav a second or a third
time. These birds leave their nests when you approach them, while
the other birds do not. Thev will go into the Penguin rookeries and
caiTy off the young Penguins to eat, and will also reach in and pull
birds (Petrels) out of the holes in the ground."

Coming to Kerguelen, and toiiching the Giant Petrel, the Rev.
A. E. Eaton wrote : " The breeding places of the Giant Petrel in Royal

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. gn

Sound, which had long been an enigma to us, were discovered on Long
Island by a shooting party from the ' Volage,' on the 23rd December.
The nests (according to the statements of the officers) were of a similar
make to those of the Albatross, and contained half-grown nestlings.
They were constructed above the gi'ound amongst Azorella, about 200
yards from the sea, not very far from each other. There were two
groups of them on the south-west side of the island, each containing
about thirtv nests, wliich were situated on the upper parts of very
gradual slopes. One of the nestlings was brought off to the ship. It
was about as large as a Cochin fowl. Whenever anybody walked past,
it ejected oil from its mouth to the distance of a yard, after the manner
of Petrels ; on this account it was summarily set upon and despatched.
Its down was veiy dense and thick, and fonned a regular jacket,
beneath which the yoimg feathers were well-developed. Dr. Ganod,
of the Zoological Society, on dissecting it, found portions of two Prions'
skulls in its crop."

Coming neai-er home, the eggs of the Giant Petrel in my collection
are from Macquarie Island, a bold and desolate spot about 650 miles
south-west by south from New Zealand, where these birds breed in
small rookeries from September to November.

684. — D.vPTioN CAPENSis, LimiaBus. — (640)
CAPE PETREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of .Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 53.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 42S.

Geogrn plural Diyfrihufinn. — Seas of Quecns'aud, New South Wales,
Victoria, South and West Austraha. and Tasmania ; also New Zealand
and Southern Ocean in general, north to Ceylon and to the coast of
Peru.

Xfst. — See " Observations."

Egg^. — TJndescribed.

Ohxrrvntion!;. — This Petrel, with beautifully mottled upper surface
and snow-white under parts, frequents the southern seas, and is the
familiar " Cape Pigeon " of voyagers. It has been noticed o£P the
coasts of all the Australian States, except perhaps in the north. On
the western coast a few usually appear every winter. It is also foimd
numeroiis at most seasons of the year in New Zealand waters. These
romantic birds are evidently fond of the far south. Tlie " Challenger "
Expedition occasionally saw a flock of Cape Pigeons roosting on the
top of an iceberg, while Sir James Ross noted a flock of young birds
Januarv. 1841, near Victoria Land.

gi2 WESTS ANV EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Gould found the Cape Petrel extremely tame and numerous ofE the
south coast of Tasmania. He had no doubt that the bird constantly
circumnavigates the globe, from the fact that individuals which had
been caught, marked, and again set at liberty had been found following
vessels for hundreds of miles for the sake of the offal thrown overboard.

Like most Petrels, the Cape Petrel ejects, when in-itated, an oily
substance from its mouth. Its notes are a feeble " cac, cac, cac, cac,"
frequently uttered, the tliii-d being pronounced the shortest. It weighs
fom-teen to eighteen ounces. Total length, 16i inches.

Notliing is known of the breeding economy of the pretty Cape
Petrel. It is reported to breed on Tristan d'Acunha — a statement
improbable — and on the iisland of South Georgia.

Professor Moseley mentions that when the "Challenger" was
anchored off Heard Island, one of the Macdonald Group, 240 miles
south-east of Kerguelen, the bay was thronged with Cape Pigeons
{Bcvpiion cajjensis), wliich were mostly feeding on the water at the
mouth of a glacier stream. They were breeding in holes in the low
basaltic cliffs. Date, 6th Febniary, 1874.

Dr. Sharpe states, " that the Cape Petrel breeds on Kerguelen Island
is proved by the following note in Sir J. Hooker's Joimial : — ' It builds
in sheltered ledges of cliffs, about 50 to 100 feet above the level of the
sea. I foimd two in a nest, but quite matm'C. Its note is a short,
hoarse croak.' "

Although the eggs of the Cape Petrel have not yet been described,
I am enabled, through the kindness of Mr, Robert Hall, to give a re-
production of an exceedingly interesting photograph taken by him of a
pair of birds on their nest among the rocks of Kerguelen Land.

In wilting to the "Ibis" (p. 28, 1900)' Mr. Hall states:— "At
Accessible (Betsy Cove), on February 7th, I ob.sei-ved four nests, each
with a young one partially covered with down. The nests were in the
cavities of a rough cliff, and were simply hollows, without any attempt
to place weeds in them. I saw two adults sitting in a sheltered nook,
without egg or young; and one of these birds was pla^'ing little stones,
one by one, aroimd it with the bill, as if to make the nesting place
comfortable. These cavities or gi'ottoes (approximately 6x3x3 feet)
were about 50 feet above sea<-level, and by stooping I could get inside
them, except in one case. A little climb brought me to an old bird,
which clucked and made its trill ; and I surprised another on its nest
but it did not fly, though it vigorO'U.sly defended its young, and jumped
backward and forward. The young may be described thus: — Length,
12-75 inches; down, generally greyish above, gi-evish-white below;
bill, black."

( ATI-: I i:rK[j.s i\ Ni.sr,

From a Vlwto by Kohl. Hull.

SOOTV ALllATKUbS U.\ Nhbl
Fiom a I'lwto by Rubt. Hull,

NESTS AND EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. Q13

685. — Halob.ena C'ffiRri.KA, fliiieliii. — (634)
BLUE PETREL .

Eigure.—Go\i\d: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 5:

Reference.— Czi. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 431.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs.Saxmdeis : Trans. Roy. Soc, vol.

clxviii., p. 165 (1878I ; Kidder and Coues : Smithsonian

Miscell. Coll., vol. xiii., p. 17 (187.S).

Genf/rnphirn! Di.^tnhufion.SoRS of New Soixth Wales, Victoria,
South and West Australia, and Tasmania ; also New Zealand and
Southern Ocean generally, between 40 deg. and 60 deg. south latitudes.

jVe.?«. — A deep, tortuous burrow in a hill side, near the sea, exca-
vated beneath dense masses of vegetation, and often several feet in
length (Kidder &: Coues).

Effg.'!. — Clutch, one; roundish oval or elliptical in form; texture of
shell comparatively fine; siu-face without gloss; colour, white, usually
stained with dirt. Dimensions in inches : (1) 2-1 x 1-43, (2) l-gS x 1-42,
(3) 1-92 X 1-48, (4) 1-9 X 1-48.

Oh.ifriritiiiii>:. — Gould observes that this bird may be distinguished
from evei7 other of the smaller Petrels by the conspicuous white tips
of the centre tail-feathei-s. It is a very powerful flier, and he obsei'ved
it in every part of the ocean he travelled between the 40th and 55th
degrees of south latitude, both in the Atlantic and Pacific. However,
the bird is rare in Australian collections.

According to the testimony of the British and American Transit of
Venus Expeditions to Kerguelen, 1874-5, the Blue Petrel had probably
begim to pair by the 13th September, when two birds, male and female,
were usually found in each burrow during the day. Eggs were first
found plentiful on the 23rd October, young began to hatch 12th Nov-
ember, and a nestling almost fully-fledged was killed 9th February.
Newly-hatched young have bill and toes slaty-blue, with apparently
pale-yellowish webs and brownish-black claws.

The Rev. A. E. Eaton wrote : " The resemblance between this
Petrel and the Prion desnlafns extends even to their ' coo.' Their calls
undergi'ound are so much ahke, that on hearing one it is difiicult to say
to which of the two species the bird cooing should be referred without
digging it up for inspection, and their tone is very similar in sound
to the cooing of some foreign Doves. But their calls duiing flight are
very different from one another.

" The comparative immunity of this species from the ravages of the
men was due partly to its commencing to lay eggs later than the former,
and partly to its nests being less easy of access than those of that Petrel.
For H . c<xrulea is in the habit of biuTowing in Azorrlln growing upon
the dn' soft loam where no obstacles impede its progress ; its eggs are,
58

e

QI. A-ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

therefore, obtainable without much trouble. It had only just begiui
to lay when we fii'st landed (October). So long as its eggs continued
to be fresh the liberty men dug out as many as they could, cruelly
destroying the old birds, which they flung away in heaps; but when
most of the eggs became uneatable through incubation they abandoned
Petrel digging."

Tlu-ough the courtesy of the lessee of Macquarie Island (Mr. Joseph
Hatch, of^Invercai-gill, New Zealand), Mr. J. R. Burton was permitted
dvu-ing bis spare time to collect some birds and eggs for my work. Th
collection contained several eggs, new to the Australasian region, of the
Blue Petrel.

Mr. Bm-ton obsei-ved that the small biuTOWs of the Blue Petrels
were exceedingly nimierous iu the peaty gi-ound luider the tussock gi-ass,
anywhere on the lower levels^ but chiefly on the east coast. Tlie tuimel
is usually tortuous and invariably on the incline before the egg chamber,
which is about 6 inches in diameter, and lined on the floor with portions
of tussock grass, is reached.

Mr. Burton's notes agi-ee with those made on Kerguelen by the
Rev. Mr. Eaton, that these Petrels commence to- lay about the end of
October, while fresh eggs may be gathered up to the end of November.
The fii-st young may be found in December.

All the Blue Petrels quit Macquarie about the end of May.

686. — Prion vittatus, Gmelin. — (644)
BROAD-BILLED DOVE PETREL OR PRION.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 55.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 432.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. ii., p. 475 (1865) ; Travers : Trans. New Zealand
Inst., vol. v., p. 220 (1873).

GeiKjraphiail Bistrihiitinii . — Seas of South Queensland, New South
Wales, Victoria, South and West Australia and Tasmania ; also New
Zealand and Southern Ocean, usually between 40 deg. and 60 deg. south
latitudes.

Nest. — A cavity in a, clifi' on tlie sea shore, or in a- hole buiTowed

in soft peaty soil on the summit of small islets. The biuTow, which

takes a slightly oblique direction, is from H to 2 feet in length, and
usually straight (Travers).

Effffx. — Clutch, one ; round oval in fonn : texture of shell compara^
tively fine; surface minutely pitted, and without gloss; colour, pure
white. Dimensions in inches: 1-9 x 1-43. According to Travers:
1-95 xl-47; Gould: 2-0 x 1-5.

A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTRAUAN BIRDS. git;

Observations. — This Dove Petrel, slightly the largest of the Prions,
and easily recognized by its much dilated bill, is found most numerous
between the latitudes above mentioned. Gould observed it plentiful
in the SoutJi Indian Ocean. He obtained two fine eggs of this bird,
which were collected bj' ^lacgillivray on St. Paul Island in that ocean.

The eggs of the Broad-billed Prion in my collection I received from
the late Mr. T. H. Pott«. They were taken on Pitt Island, one of the
Cliatham Islands, situated about 450 miles to the eastward of New-
Zealand.

Toucliing the Broad-billed Prion breeding on these islands,
Mr. H. H. Travers wTites : " Blue Billy of the settlei-s. It breeds in
September, and only one egg is laid. Where the egg is laid in holes
in rocks it is placed on the bare rock ; but in the peaty holes a few-
leaves are foimd, but whether placed there by this bird or by smaller
sea birds which use the same holes for breeding, I cannot say. Both
birds take part in incubation. They are not easily disturbed when
sitting, pecking at the hand whilst the egg is being taken, but lemaining
on the nest after its removal. When taken from the holes they fly
away with a wavy, uncertain flight, as if blinded by the sudden light.
One mode of getting this and other sea birds is b}' lighting a large fire
at night at the foot of a high cliff, against which they dash themselves,
or, becoming stupefied, are easily knocked do^vn. In a cave on Pitt
Island, w-hich I reached by the aid of a rope, I found a cat, which had
eaten the heads of nearly a hundred young birds without the bodies
being touched. Many old birds had also been killed by this cat. How
it got there I cannot imagine."

687. — Prion banksi, Gould.— (643)
BANKS DOVE PETREL OR PRION.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 434.

Previous Description of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
(1888).

Geograpliirnl Dixfn'hiition. — Seas of South Queensland, New South
Wales, Victoria, South and West Australia and Tasmania; also New
Zealand and Southern Ocean, usually between 35 deg. and 60 deg. south
latitudes ; but as far north as the Equator in the Malay Ai-chipelago.

Jiest. — A small burrow imdergi-ovuid, on hill sides.

Egffs. — Clutch, one ; roundish or broad oval in shape ; textui'e of
shell compai-atively fine ; siu-face without gloss ; coloxir, pure white.
Dimensions in inches: (1) 2-01 x 1-38, (2) 2-0 x 1-4, (3) 1-98 x 1-49,
(4) 1-97 X 1-45, (5) 1-97 x 1-42, (6) 1-87 x 1-32.

9i6

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Ohxervations. — Banks Dove Petrel may be constantly seen in the
southern sea^^ over the same latitudes as its congeners. However, it has
been noted as far north as the Equator.

It is like the other members of its genus, bat most I'esembles
P. (hsolatus, and has been seen in company with that bird; but, as
Gould points out, the Banks bird may be distinguished by its larger size,
and by the more bluff and darker-coloured head. Banks Petrel and the
Dove Petrel are frequently found in company.

Sir Walter Buller states that in the winter of 1878 he had occasion to
visit the Wellington west coast after a north-west gale had been blowing
for several, days, when he found a large number of Prions had been killed
by the tempest and their bodies washed ashore. " It is an ill wind that
blows nobody good." Sir Walter was fortunate in obtaining during one
day twenty fresh birds. Of these twelve (7 i^and 5 2) were referable to
Prion turtur (desolatusj, and eight (4(?and 4^) to jP. hnn/y-ni.

The eggs I have described are from Macquarie Island, where the
Banks Prions commence to arrive in, August. Fresh eggs may be col-
lected at the end of November and the beginning of December. The
nesting biuTows are in the drier ground on the bare sides of hills, and the
egg chamber is devoid of lining of any kind. The call notes uttered in
tue burrows resemble a dove-like " coo-coo-coo." The birds appear to be
diurnal. Silently they leave in thousands at daylight, fly up and down
the coast in flocks, and return at dusk.

688. — Prion desol.\tus, Gmelin. — (641)
P. turtiir. Smith.

DOVE PETKEL OR PRION.

Fii^ure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 54.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 434.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Saunders : Trans. Roy. Soc, vol.
clxviii , p. 165 (187H) ; Kidder and Cones ; Smithsonian Miscell.
Coll., vol. xiii,, p. 16 (1878) : Travers: Trans. New Zealand Inst.,
vol. v., p. 220 (1873) ; Campbell : Victorian Naturalist (1887) ;
Buller : Birds of New Zealand, vol. ii., p. 210 (18S8) ; North :
Austn. Mus. Cat., app. (i8go) ; Hall : Ibis, p. 30 (igoo).

Geogra phical Distribution. — Seas of South Queensland, New South
Wales, Victoria, South and West Australia and Tasmania; also New
Zealand and the Southern Ocean in general between 35 deg. and 60 dog.
south latitude, but has been found as fax south as the Ice Barrier in
latitude 66 deg. 30 min.

Nest. — A rat-like hole, usually imderground, but sometimes under
rank herbage, or even in a rock cievice, the floor of the egg cliambcr
being lined with a few stalks of grass or portions of sea-weed.

Eyy.i. — Clutch, 011c ; clliptically inclined in shape ; texture of shell
comparatively fine ; surface slightly glossy ; some specimens have limy

l\rESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. gi^

nodules; coloiu-, jnue white. Dimensions in inches of a scries from
Kergiielen Island: (1) 1-99 x 14, (2) 1-98 x 1-29, (3) 1-93 x 1-39,
(4) 1-92 X 1-35, (5) 1- 9 X 1-32, (6) 1-87 x 1-45, (7) 1-82 x 1-32,
(8) 1-78 x 1-75.

Observations. — The chaiining little Dove Petrel is extremely abundant
on the New Zealand coast. Sir Walter Buller states : " In boisterous
weather it appears to suffer more than any other oceanic species from
the fuiy of the tempest, and the sea beach is sometimes found literally
strewn with the bodies of the dead and dying. I have frequently
watched them battling, as it were, with the stonn, till at length, unable
longer to keep to windward, they have been mercilessly borne down
upon the sands, and, being unable from sheer exhaustion to rise on the
wing again, have been beaten to death by the rolling siu-f, or pounced
upon and devovu-ed by a hovering Seagull. On picking some up and
placing them in the pocket of my overcoat they have soon revived, and
in some instances have lived for several days on a diet of fresh meat
minced into small pieces. From the activity they always exhibited
on the approach of night, seeking the dark comers of the room, and
fluttering about in a vei-y excited manner, with a rapid twittering note,
I concluded tliat, whether on land or at sea, this Petrel is more nocturnal
than diiu-nal in its habit.s. During the day the eyes were always half
closed, imparting a peculiar fretful expression to the face."

Mentioning New Zealand, Reischek foimd the Dove Petrel breeding
m holes undergi-omid on both the Little Ban-ier and the Chickens
Islands, where, however, it appeared scarce, and was only met with on
the liighest wooded ridges in the centre of the island. Mr. Reischek found
a fresh egg on the 1st November, and young birds in the beginning of
December.

Mr. H. H. Travers is said to have obtained this species on the
Chatham Islands, where it occurs in immense numbers. It breeds in
holes in the ground, laying its eggs in a nest, composed of a few dead
leaves ; both parents assist in incubation. Whilst on Mangare Island,
Mr. Travers frequently found these Prions caught in the branches of
scrubby trees, where, it is supposed, the birds were caught while
attempting to escape from the Sea Hen ( Megdh.itrix).

According to the Rev. A. E. Eaton's observations, on Kerguelen,
the buiTow of this Dove-like Prion resembled a. rat hole, being usually
made in herbage growing upon dry, rocky slopes or stony groimd. The
egg is laid upon loose debi-is of Azorella or on the bare gi'ound. The
birds were paii-ing in October, fresh eggs being obtained the 29tli
November ; but I think it must be a mistake tliat most of the nestlings
had flowai before the end of Februaiy, because Mr. Hall obsei-ved that
tlu-oughout January (1898) only about ten per cent, of the eggs were
much incubated.

Qig NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTl^AUAN BIRDS.

689. — Prion ariel, Gould. — (642)
FAIRY DOVE PETREL OR PRION.

Figure. —

Hejerence. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 436.

Eggs. — Described as those of P. turtur (desolatus).

Geogra[i]iira^ Distrihution. — Seas of New South. Wales, Victoria,
South Australia, and Tasmania; also New Zealand and Southern
Ocean, generally between 35 deg. and 60 deg. south latitudes.

Nest. — A small hole luider ground, in crevice of rock or upon the
ground underneath rank vegetation, such as pig-face weed (Me^em-
hrianfhemiim), &c., on isolated rocks or islets.

Eyys. — Clutch, one; inchned to oval in shape, occasionally elliptical;
textiu'e of shell fine ; surface witliout gloss ; colour, pure white. Dimen-
sions of six examples from, Noi'th-east Island, Bass Strait : (1) 1'78 x 1-29'
(2; 1-78 X 1-19, (3) 1-72 x 1-23, (4) 1-71 x 1-27, (5) 1-68 x 1-24,
(6) 1-6JX 1-25.

Ohnervrifioiu. — The usual habitat of this Dove Petrel is the Southern
seas, between 35 deg. and 60 deg. south latitude. Gould prociu'ed many
examples (including the type) of tliis bird in Bass Strait on the 16th
April, 1839, where many were flying around him.

It was in Bass Strait that I enjoyed my experience with these most
delicately pliunaged birds. On the 24th November, 1890, dufing the
expedition of the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria to Kent Group,
we pulled away from the main island in a whale boat, the principal
light-keeper, Mr. Charles Brown, being in chai-ge, for North-east Island,
which had not been visited for seven or more years. Fortunately the
sea was cabn, for the landing there is a difficult matter. Approaching
the island, we saw it was about half a mile across and between 200 feet
and 300 feet high — a huge, coa.rse, gi'anite rock, with beetling walls all
round. We steered for a slight indentation, which seemed oiu' only
chance by iwhich to scramble to the summit. Tlie rocks were prettily
decorated with grey-coloiu^ed lichens and bright-green pig-face weed,
which, with large, stany, white flowers, trailed over in parts the ledges
of rocks. Amongst other birds — Mutton Birds, Gulls, Oyster Catcliers,
&c. — we found this place a breeding home of the chai'ming little Fairy
Dove Petrel. It was breeding in numbci-s in the crevices of rock or
iuid(!r the densely-matted stems and roots of tlie pig-face weed. Several
birds and many eggs (the latter in. an advanced state of incubation) were
secured.

This bird has been discovered breeding in other parts of the
Strait, notably on Albatross Rock, where Messrs. D. Le Souef and
H. P. C. Ashworth found them in 1894, Craggy Island, and other spots.

We believed the.so birds at first to be Prion dcxoldtii^, wiiich the
P. ariel resembles much in colour and general appeai'aiice, but the

MUTTON BIRD EGCING-NUKTH-EAST ISLAND.
Fyom a Photo bv tht Author.

BLACK OYSTER-CATCHERS NEST.

From a Photo by the A uthor.

NESTS AND EGGS Or AUSTRALIAN BINDS. gig

latter is mucli less in size, in fact it is the smallest of the fom- species
foiuid ill Australian watere. However, in the mistake we erred in
very good company. 'I he eggs 1 received, tiiken 1885 from the Brothers
— islands in Cook Strait — where the birds commence to lay about 2Utli
October, are no doubt referable to the P. ariel, so the collector,
Mr. Percy Seymour-, vouches.* The late Mr. T. H. Potts described
them as P. turtur(desulatu!i)\ while no less an aiithority than Sir Walter
BuUer, at a. meeting of the Wellington Philosophical Society, held 29th
Januaiy, 1876, exhibited from the same locality (The Brothers) five
examples of the adult and young, together with a specimen of the egg,
described as P. hanhi. So much do doctors differ; and no wonder,
because the identification of the four species of these fairy-like oceanic
wanderers is exceedingly perplexing.

The following is the " Key to the Species " of the four Prions, as
furnished in the ''British Museum Catalogue": —

(a) Bill very wide (0-72 to 0-8 in.), edges of the maxilla
distinctly convex ; lamellas distinctly visible

when the bill is shut ... ... ritttifiis.

(h) Bill nanower (0-5 in.), but the edges of the maxilla
distinctly convex ; lamellse only visible near
the lictus of the closed bill... ... ... hmiksi.

(c) Bill still naiTower, edges of the maxilla almost

straight; lamellse invisible ... ... ... drxalatux.

(dj Bill much smaller, more compressed, the uiigiiis
large, sides of the maxillae straight, and the
head, &c., paler blue-grey ... ... ... ariel.

FAMILY— PELECANOIDID.^.

690. — Pelecanoides urin.\trix, Gmelin. — (650)
DIVING PETREL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 6o.

Heferencc. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 437.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
(1887); Buller: Birds of New Zealand, vol. ii., p. 207 (1888);
North : Rec. Austn. Mus., vol. i., p. 122 (1S91).

Geographical Distrihiitinn. — Seas of New South Wales, Victoria,
South Australia, and Tasmania ; also New Zealand and regions of Cape
Horn and Falkland Islands.

Xefit. — A burrow, from 6 to 8 inches or more in length, underground,
or a crevice under a. ledge of rock, on islets oflt the coast.

* Mr. Sevmourhas since sent me ahead for identification.

g20

A'ESrS AND EGGS OF AVSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Eggs. — Clutch, one ; roundish or round oval in shape ; texture of
shell somewliat fine ; surface minutely pitted and without gloss ; colour,
pure wlute at first, but frequently stained with brownish diii,. Dimen-
sions in inches of selected examples: (1) 1'63 x 1"24, (2) 1'6 x 1*22.

(3) 1-55 X 1-25, (4) 1-54 X 1-18, (5) 1-52 x 1-2, (6) 1-44 x M7.

Observations. — This chubby-shaped little Petrel frequents the seas
washing the southern jjart of Australia and New Zealand, also those of
Cape Horn and vicinity. It appears to be represented in the South
Indian Ocean by P. exsul, which is obtained on Kerguelen, &c.

The powers of flight are not so gi-eat in this singular species as
in most other Petrels, being a jjeculiar fluttering motion close to the
surface of the water, but the bird may be literally said to fly under
water, so great are its diving powers, and hence the especially apro-
priate name of Diving Petrel.

I had the opportunity of first describing authenticated eggs of this
Diving Petrel in the beginning of August, 1886, having received a series
of eggs, together with a bird for identification, from Mr. F. Dunk, at
that time lighthouse keeper on Cliffy Island, ofl: Wilson's Proniontoiy.
Prom Mr. Dunk I learnt that the Diving Petrels usually remain in the
vicinity of the islands, but at seasons disappear for two or three months.
During June and July the bii'ds come ashore to scrape out or prepare
their nest-buiTows. The laying time occurs about the end of July and
continues for about a fortnight.

On North-east Island, one of the Kent Group, about fifty miles
south of Cliffy Island, where Mutton Birds and Dove Petrels (Prion)
were breeding, we also found laige young, nearly feathered, with down
adherujg, of the Diving Petrels, on 24th November (1890). They
appeared to have been hatched about the end of September. Ihe
young in down are cloudy-giey ; bill and eyes black ; feet and legs
bluish.

According to Sir W. BiiUer, this Petrel has been foimd breeding
on Stephens Island, in Cook Strait, New Zealand. It aiso' breeds on
Karewa Island (off Tauranga), on the small islets off the Great Barrier,
And on the " Hen and Chickens."

Fui-ther south, on Macquarie Island, Diving Petrels have been found
laying during October (end) and November, about 500 feet above sea-
level, on the summit of the hills.

NESTS AAD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. g2\

FxUlILY— DIOMEDEID^ ; ALBATROSSES.

691. DlOMEDE.\ E.KULANS, LiUUKVIS. (617)

WANDERING ALBATROSS.

Hgurc. — Gould : Birds o£ Australia, £ol., vol. vii., pi. 38.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 441.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould: Birds o£ Australia (1S48) ;
also Handbook, vol. li., p. 432 (1S65) ; Kidder and Coues :
Smithsonian Miscell. Coll., vol. xiii., p. (1878) ; BuUer :

Birds of New Zealand, vol. ii., p. 197 (188S) ; VerriU : Trans.
Connect. Ac, vol. ix., p. (1895).

Geographical Distribution. — Seas of South Queensland (occasionally),
New South Wales, Victoria, South and West Australia, and Tasmania ;
also New Zealand, and in general the Southern, South Pacific, and
South Atlantic Oceans.

Nest. — Clumps of short grass and moss, trodden down, well matted
together, and scooped about with earth and feathers into a conical-
shaped mound, with an egg cavity at the top about the size and depth
of a soup-plate. In colonies on the high laud of cei-tain desolate
islands in the southern seas. Dimensions — circumference at the base,
about 6 feet ; height 1 to 2 feet or more. The variation in the height
may be accounted for, it is supposed, by some of the older nests being
used and added to year after year.

Eggs. — Clutch, one; lengthened in form, or long oval; texture of
shell coarse or gi-anular; siu-face rough and without gloss; coloiu-, dull-
white, usually with a few dull piu-plish-brown mai-kiugs about the apex.
Dimensions in inches of two examples from Campbell Island :
(1) 5-15 X 2-9, (2) 4-85 X 3-1.

Oh.'iervatioii'i. — The well-named Wandering Albatross is the largest
and most powerful of great oceanic birds. It is stated to be most
abundant in the seas between the 30th and 60th degi'ees of south
latitude, which includes the seas of New South Wales, Victoria, South
and West Austr-aha, and Tasmania. However, " Wanderers " have
been seen as far north as Moreton Bay (Queensland coast), while Mj-. a.
Alder, taxidemiist, Brisbane, mentions having received a fine specimen
from Southpoi-t, sent by Mr. C. H. E. Lambert. Its expanse of wings
measured 94 feet, or two feet longer than a large Wedge-tailed Eagle.

One of these majestic birds was brought prominently imder notice
some years ago by fallmg exhausted and dying upon the beach at
Fremantle, West Austraha, with a tin plate fastened roimd its neck
inscribed with the mournful intelhgence of the loss of the French ship
" Tamaris," and that thii-teen of the siu-vivors were on Crozet Islands.
The appearance of this winged messenger on the western coast has been

p22 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

called a romantic story. I regarded it an act of Providence, which
was imheeded ahke by the nation who owned the ill-fated vessel and
the nation to whose shores the bird winged its Ihght. The islands were
within a week's steaming of the Cape of Good Hope ; yet, after much
apathy and an imwarranted delay of over half a year, a.Freuch transport
visited the Crozet Islands but— too late. The date on the tin collar
was 13th September, 1887; the bird was picked up three weeks latei-.

The chief homes of the Wandering Albatross are desolate islands
of the south seas, which at certain seasons are swept by the bleakness
and coldness of recuiiing Antarctic meteorological disturbances. The
nearest breeding places to Australia are Chatham Islands, Auckland,
Campbell and Antipodes. On the Auckland Islands the Albatrosses
are said to breed on Southern Island — -A.dam's — which is ranged length-
wise with hills at an altitude of about 2,000 feet. At intci-vals for about
seven miles, and about 1,500 feet above sea^level, are the rookeries of
Albatrosses, mostly on the eastern aspect of the hills, on the lee side.
There is a particularly lai'ge rookery at tlie back of Fly Harbom-. Tue
base of the hills is lined with ironwood (so-called), with thick and dark-
green foliage. Higlier up is found rank tussock grass, swamps at
intervals, abundance of moss, in some places covering treacherous
bogs. There is a lake near the siunmit of the hills, also a striking water-
fall, that tumbles on to the beach near the South Cape.

The following account is a description by a person who paid a visit
to the Albatross home on the above-mentioned island : — " One day when
I was at the Auckland Islands, a gi'oup situated in latitude 51 deg.
south and longitude 166 deg. east, I had an unexpected opportunity of
secm'ing to myself that great privilege of a visit to their private home
circle. A large party of us landed at Port Ross, and starting under the
guidance of an aged chief named MaUouri, arrived in due time at a
secluded and densely-wooded valley, which opened to the sandy shore
of a deep bay. We had this to cross. Facing us was a lofty hill,
clothed to the top with shrubs and trees of a stunted growth. By the
aid of roots and branches we continued to scramble up, and at last
emerged from an abyss of shrubs we had been traversing, and stood
breathless upon a piece of tableland that jutted into the sea. Not a
tree or a sluiib was to be seen, the only vegetation being a stiuited sort
of tussock grass. But we were at Bird Village, and to our gi'eat delight
found the inhabitants at home. We had airived dm-ing the season of
incubation. Each nest was occupied by the hen bird, and close by stood
her mate — a loving guai'dian. Nothing could induce her to leave the
nest. She would look at us imploringly if we came near, and express
her objection to our visit by a harsh snapping of the beak, but she still
sat on her egg. The mate at the same time made a slight show of
resistance, and then, with uncouth gait and a spasmodic acUon of the
wings, waddled away to the clifi'.

" The nests were quite simple in their construction. Each of them
was made by pressing down a dump of grass into the fonn of a shallow
bowl, in depth and circumference not much larger tlian a soup-plate.
I take it for gi'auted that the female lavs only one (>gg. Indeed, the
little nest, which the breast of the bird covers and overlaps, could hold

N£STS AAD EGGS 01- AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. g2j

no more. Well-broddeu Albatross reads intersect each other in the
village, and the birds' liighroad led from the nest to the edge of the
cliff, whence they cast themselves forth on the wing. It seemed to us
also that there was an attention paid to regulaiity in placing the nests
in a line or street, so that one mam path might commixnicatc with them
aU."

On Campbell Island the rookeries are at iiitei-vals ou the cast side of
the hills wliielx ran the length of the island for about seven uules,
passing along to the north of Perseverance Harbour. The highest hill
is Lyall Hill, 1,355 feet, and is about the central peak.

Going beyond the AustraUan region we find it stated that the
Giant or Wandering Albatross breeds on Tristan dAcunJia and on the
top of In;u'ce«sible Island adjacent. At Tristan there ai-e nests actually
williin the crater of the terminal coue around the lake, about 7,000
feet above sea-level.

In liis " Notes on Birds and Eggs from the Islands of Gough,
Kerguelen, and South Georgia, " regarding the Wandering Albatross,
Mr. G. E. Verrill states two skins and six eggs from South Georgia,
and eighty-seven eggs and one skeleton from Gough Island were
received, and the Albatrosses were common in all three islands.
Mr. Comer's (the collector's) own statement is : " The Albatrosses come
ashore dming the mouth of December to mate. The male bird usually
remains by till the nest is built. The old nests are usually taken and
built higher, the bird sitting on the nest and reaching out and picking
up the moss and mud and short grass around her. The nests are from
four to ten inches in height, and from twelve to sixteen inches across,
tlie top being nearly as broad as the bottom. They do not build near
other birds, but lay scattering and generally on knolls and usually ou
high land, where there is a good chance to run against the wind and so
rise from the ground. These birds laj' but one egg. When robbed
they will rem.xin on their nest for a few days and then leave. I have
taken a second egg from the same nest, but my behef is that the first
bird had left the nest and another taken it. The Albatross skeleton
I send you is a female, and had just laid when I killed her ; ^there were
no other small eggs in her such as I have always found in other birds
that lay again.

" The yomig Albatrosses have to be at least ten months old before
they can fly, and I think it safe to say that not more than five out of a
hundred Uve to leave their nests. They are killed by Sea Hens and
Nellies."

Professor Moseley mentions in his " 'Challenger' Notes " that Charles
Goodridge, who was one of a sealing party on the Prince Edward Islands
in 1820, and spent two yeare on the Crozets, says that the Albatrosses
thare lay about Christmas, and that the period of incubation is aboivt three
months. The young, he says, were wing feathered and good to eat
about May. and did not fly ofi" till December.

At Campbell Island the young of Diamedea exiilaiis have been
observed just chipping their shells in Februaiy.

Referring to the remarkable length of time the young Albatross
remains in or about the nest. Sir Walter Buller, in commenting upon

924

N£SrS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

the fact, quotes from Professor Hutton, who states ; " At a ceitaiu
time of the year, between Februaiy and Jiuie, Mr. Harris caimot exactly
say when, the old birds leave their youug aud go to sea, and do uot
retiu'n until the next October, when they ai'rive in large numbers.
Each pair goes at once to its old uest; and after a httle fondhng of
the youug one, which has remained in or near its nest the whole time,
they tiu'u it out aud prepare the nest for the next brood. The deserted
ones are iu good condition, and very lively, frequeutly being seen off
their nests exercising their wings. When the old birds retmn to take
possession of then- nests, the young often remain outside and nibble at
the head of the old one until the feathers between the beak and the
eye are removed, and the skin made quite sore. The young birds do
not go far from land until the following year, when they accompany
the old birds to sea. "

" It is amusing," writes Professor Moseley, " to watch the process of
courtship. The male, standing by the female on the nest, raises his
wings, spreads his tail, aud elevates it, throws up his head with liis
bill in the air, or stretches it out forwards as far as he can, and then
utters, a curious cry like the Molly Hawks, but in a much lower key,
as would be expected from his larger laiynx. Wlulst uttering the cry
the bird sways his neck up and down. The female responds with a
similar note, and they briug the tips of their bills lovingly together.
This sort of thmg goes on for half-an-hour or so at a time. No doubt
the birds consider they axe singing. Occasionally another Albatross
flies round and lights upon the grass, but I saw none take wing. "

The greatest enemy to the Albatross is the Southern Skua
(Alegahstrix), a fierce bird, always on the watch for the Albatross quitting
its nest, when this feathered pirate instantly pounces down and devours
the egg. So well is this poor bird aware of the propensity of its foe, that
it snaps the mandibles of its bill violently whenever it observes the Skua
flying overhead.

Sir Walter Buller's D. regia is a very fine variety of D. exulans,
while the species frequenting Kerguelen is also regarded as another
variation, known as D. chioiioptera. I had the opportunity of examin-
ing an exceedingly large and handsome bird, in spotless plumage, from
Kerguelen, brought thence by Mr. Hans Gundersen's private expedition.
Six selected eggs measured in inches: (1) 5'38 x 3-0, (2) 5-31 x 2'95,
(3) 5 12 X 3-12, (4) 5-0 x 3-25, (5) 4-87 x 3-2, (6) 4-75 x 3-25. Average
weight 14 ;J ounces. These eggs are long ovals, slightly more compressed
at one end ; texture of shell exceedingly coarse and somewhat porous ;
sm-face rough and without gloss ; colour, dull white, with a patch on tlie
apex of faint rufous-red freckles.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 925

692. DlOMEDEA ALBATRUS, PalLlS. (618)

D. Iiror/ii/ura. Temminck.
SHORT-TAILED ALBATROSS.

Figure— Could : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 30.
RefereKSe.— Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 444.
Prmious Descriptions of £^^i.— Smithsonian Institute ; Campbell :
Vxtorian Naturalist (1898).

Geographical Distribution. — Seas of Northern Territoiy ; also the
North Pacific in general.

y^est^ — None, the egg being laid on the bare ground.

Eggs. — Clutch, one ; lengthened oval or elliptically inclined in shape ;
texture of shell coarse and strong ; siu^ace rough, with just a perceptible
trace of gloss ; colour, dirty or yellowish- white, more or less ingrained or
stained with earth, and with a nisty-coloured or rufous-brown cap of
freckled or blotchy markings on the larger end. In addition, some

examples have, here and there over the rest of the shell, dull piu-plisli-
brown spots. Dimensions in inches: (1) 4-67 x 2-9, (2) 4-65 x 2-95 ; a
smaller example in Dr. Charles Ryan's collection measures 426 x 2-63.

Observations. — Of the fifteen species and varieties of Albatrosses
inhabiting the globe, twelve of them fly over tlie ocean wastes of the
soutliern seas, therefore most of them occur in Australian or New
Zealand waters. The remaining three species are fotmd in the North
Pacific Ocean.

The Short-tailed Albatross, Diomeden alhafrus. belongs to the nor-
thern birds, and is supposed to range as far south as the seas of the
northern parts of Australia. This fine bird resembles the Wandering
Albatross, from which it may be distinguislicd, as Gould points out.
by the shortness of its tail and by the tnincated form of the base of
the bill.

There is a halo of romance surroimding this family of great oceanic
birds, chiefly, I think, on account of the weirdness or sublime isolation
of then' breeding homes. Tliese are, for instance, the island of Tristan
d'Acunha. with its mist-enveloped mountain peak 8,000 feet above sea-
level ; Prince Edward Island, where snow in midsummer (December")
covers its sharply-shaped mountains ; islands of the Crozet Group,
towering from the water's edge in great basaltic cliffs and hills to a
height of 4,000 feet ; and Kerguelen's Land, or Captain Cook's Island
of Desolation (whither two of oiu- field natiu'alists, Messrs. H. Gundersen
and Robert Hall, went. Capped with towering conical peaks (6,000 feet
high), sheltering a glacier, these islands, although very imposing, are
according to navigators, severe and sterile, with a dismal climate —

926

NESTS AMD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

rain and snow even at midsummer — and where gales are said to rage
three weeks out of fO'Ui". Surely this region must be one of
the " Chambers of the South " whence arise Meteorologist Wragge's
classical storms. Coming nearer Australian shores we have Campbell
Island, a complete contrast to Kerguelen ; for, although a full degree
nearer Aiitai-ctica, Campbell island is verdure clad almost to its central
peak — Lyall Hill, 1,355 feet above the sea — and girt about the base
with iron-wood, so-called ; tliick with dark-green foliage and stems gnarled
and twisted by manv a gale ; while at our own door is the Albatross
Rock of Flinders, bald and bleak, breaking the swell of the Southern
Ocean near the North-east corner of Tasmania, where Messi-s.
D. Le Souef, H. P. C. Ashworth, and Gabriel landed recently.

Such places are some of the breeding haunts of the Albatrosses.

The Short-tailed Albatross, however, bi'eeds in northern latitudes.
The eggs I have received through the agency of Mr. Alan Owston,
Yokohama, Japan, were taken on Bonin Islands (situated in latitude
27° 40' N. and long. 142° 10' E.) where they are laid at the
end of October and the beginning of November. It is most interesting
to note that, although these months are the fall of the year in the
Northern Hemisphere, they correspond with the laying season of the
Albatrosses in the soutli, thus proving, 1 think, that the Short-tailed
Albatross was once a dweller with or sprang from the southern birds,
and became isolated in the north.

693. — DioMEDEA MELANOPHRYS, Temminck. — (622)
BLACK-BROWED ALBATROSS.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of .Vustralia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 43.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 447.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Potts : Trans. New Zealand Inst.,
vol. vi., p. 152 (1874) ; Duller : Birds of New Zealand, vol. ii.,
p. 200 (iS.SS) ; Verrill : Trans. Connect. Ac, vol. ix., p. (1895).

Gfdyniphinil Dixt rihiuinrt . — Seas of Queensland, New South
Wales, Victoria, South and West Australia, and Ta.smania ; also New
Zealand, the Southern Ocean in general, and straying to the Nortli
Atlantic.

Next. — Small, inverted cone in shape ; built of grass, moss and earth
to a height of about 4 to 12 inches from the ground, leaving a trcncli
round about from wlioncc the material has been scooped. In colonies
on plateaus or hills of certain islands in the Southern Ocean.

Egc/.<i. — Clutch, one ; elliptically inclined in shape ; textiu^ of shell
coarse ; sui-face rough and vnthout gloss ; colour, dull-white, with very
faint or obsolete markings about the apex. Other examples have

XESTS AND EGG^i OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 927

a bi-oad band of brownisli freckles roiuul the laiger cud. Dimensioiis
in inches: (1) 4-3 x 2-75, (2) 4-0 x 2-7.

Observations. — The Black-browed Albatross or Molly Hawk of the
sailors is regarded as the commonest of the Australian species, and
frequents the Southern seas, straying occiisionally to the North Atlantic.
It is a somewhat remarkable fact that an individual was known to
remain for more than thirty yeai's in company with Gannets at
IMvggcnaes Holm, Faroe Islands. An account in detail, by Mr. Kund
Andersen, of the occurrence of tliis solitary bird so far north was pub-
lislied in the Proceedings of the Roval Physical Society of Echnburgh
(1895).

Having crossed the Great Australian Bight one equinox (Spi'ing,
1889), I can bear testimony to Gould's tnithful picture : " In heavy,
black, and lowering weather, the snowj'-white plumage of this bird
offers a striking contrast to the murky clouds above and behind it."
During my own passage, Albatros,ses of several kinds were niunerous
in the Bight. I noticed on my return journey in January following that
the birds were absent. This raised my curiosity, and I got my good
friend. Captain Anthon (so well known for many years to all inter-
colonial travellers by sea), to " log " the number each month of Alba-
trosses he noticed in the Bight. The. following is the result for one
year (1893): —

Jan.

Absent

July

Numerous

Feb.

Absent

August ...

Numerous

Mar.

Few

September

Numerous

April

Increasing

October . . .

Numerous

May

Numerous

November

Decreasing

June

Numerous

Dec.

Absent

It is obvious that the laying season regulates the nimibers of birds
abroad, for it will be seen a decrease takes place duiing the first laying
month (November), and when the incubating season is at its height,
during the three following months, the birds are absent altogether.

Tlie Black-browed Albatrosses are reported to breed on Aflckland,
Campbell, Antipodes, and Boimty Islands, south of New Zealand.

We leaiTi from Sir Walter Buller that Mr. W. Dougall visited some
of these islands principally with a view of obtaining photogi'aphs of
the wild and romantic out-of-the-way places, as well as of the remarkable
scenes of bird-life, and was successful. As Sir Walter has done,
I cannot do better than quote a portion of Mr. Dougall's own interest-
ing stoiy regarding the nesting habits of the Black-browed Albatross :
" At Campbell Island I ascend one of the liighest hills. Mount Honey
(1866 feet), amidst hundreds of nests of the Albatross, siu-rounded by
notliing save the unvarying tussock, fern, and tea-tree scrub. We come
to the fii-st Albatross, set about 800 feet above sea-level, and after
reaching the crown of the hill, 1,000 feet, found them sitting in their
nests and flying about close to the ground in hundreds. Tlie Albatross
apparently lays but one egg each year, Init one of the party found two
nests containing each two eggs. All up the sides of the hill wild parsley
was growing luxuriantly, often two feet high, while everlasting daisies

928

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

clothed tlie gioixnd like a carpet. The cotton-wood plant, in full bloom,
was also 25lcntiful. As the top (1866 feet) is reached, this variety of
vegetation ends, and travelhng becomes easier, as there is no growth to
impede progi'ess, but diminutive tvissock, among which are the Albatross
nests and their tenants. Tliese nests are built up of moss and earth about
four- inches above the sm^face of the ground. The material to form the
nest is so taken from the soil as to leave a trench all round it, and this
keeps things di"y for a veiy important object in \'iew. The female
never leaves her nest during incubation, a period of about xi.rti/ days,
and is fed by her consort, who faithfully hunts for food for both. The
Albatross is a stupid bird, for it will sit, whether hatching or not, till
you timible it head over heels with your foot. At the same time it
will resent such liberty, and if it .succeeds in getting a hold, it will take
a piece out of trousers, hose, and skin. They are veiy strong birds.
Tlie best way to catch one is to make a feint at his head with the left
hand, which distracts the bird's attention, and then quickly seize it by
the bill with the right, but be sure you get the gi'ip, as they tm-n
quickly, and would snap your fingers off if they got the proper hold.
They build on the flat plateau of the hills, and, as far as we have seen,
never lower down than 700 feet from sea^level.

"At Antipodes Island, on Tuesday, Januai-y 31st, the day broke
beautifully, and the bay was like a mirror, but the glass was still low.
As the day advanced we were enveloped for half-an-hour in one of those
dense mists characteristic of this locality, and when it passed, the hills
were covered with snow. The height of this hill is marked on the
chart at 600 feet, but this is an error, as the principal hill. Mount
Galloway, is 1,200 feet above sea-level. From seaward the hill looks
conical or dome-shaped, but on reaching the summit a beautiful clear
lake, covering an area of thirteen or fourteen acres, is found — a lake
which, later in the season than the time of our visit, is much frequented
by the Albatross, being virtually surrounded by thousands of their
nests."

Among the places beyond the Australian region where this species
is stated to breed, are Falkland Islands (i.e., islands immediately south
of East Falkland), Tristan d'Acunha (doubtful) and Kerguelen.

On the last mentioned locality Mr. Robert Hall made the interesting
discovery of a splendid I'ookery near the South Head of Greenland
Harbour. The cliff faced the east and was about 700 feet high The
Albatrosses were dotted upon it to the height of about 400 feet, where
an incline led to it. He counted forty or fifty birds in a flock on the
water, just in front of the nesting place — a small propoi'tion compared
with the five hundred to seven hundred birds that whitened the cliff
above. Although Mr. Hall spent three days in visiting the isLinds and
the mainland in search of this rooken', unfortunately it was not seen
until the vessel had left and was sailing within a few hundred yards
of the place.

Laying season, November and December, the young commencing
to appear in Januaiy.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. g2C)

694. — 'Ihalassoqeron cautus, Gould. — (fi)S)
WHITE-CAPPED ALBATROSS.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 40.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 449.
I'revious Description of Eggs. — Le Souef : Ibis, p. 41b (1S95).

(J-'dyraphical Dii>trihufinn. — Seas of South Queensland, New South
Wales, Victoria^ Soutii and \\'est Australia and Tasmania.

Xest. — Composed of chocolate-coloiu-ed soil, much mixed when in a
wet state with rootlets and other vegetation, which gives it the appear-
ance of peaty substance. It is smooth, and holds together fairly well,
varying in height, externally, from 3 to 7 inches. Dimensions in
inches of an average nest : external, diameter at base, 16i ; at lop 14 ;
height, 5|; e^g cavity, 11^ across by 3^ deep (Le Souef).

Eggs.— Clutch, one; elliptical in shape, others are more compressed
at one end ; texture of shell coai-se and somewhat strong ; surface rough
and without gloss; coloiu', dust-white, with a wash or freckled band of
reddish-brown or chestnut roimd or upon the apex. Dimensions in
inches of selected examples : (1) 4'25 x 2-75- -weight, 9i ozs., (2) 4'25 x 2-5
—weight, 8| ozs., (3) 4-13 x 2-62— weight, S^; ozs.," (4) 4-0 x 2-63—
weight, 9 ozs., (5) 3-83 x 2-62— weight, 8^- ozs., (6) 3-75 x 2-75— weight,
6 1 ozs.

Ohservations. — Tlie Wliite-capped Albatross frequents the seas of the
southern part of Austraha and Tasmania.

Tlie first record we have of this bird, although not then scientifically
named, was in the days of Bass and Flinders, diuing their historical
voyage of discovery roimd Tasmania. it was the 9tli December, 1798 —
the very day when the two intrepid explorers, seeing the great western
swell breaking upon the reefs, knew their long wished for discovery was
attained, namely, that there was a pa.ssage through the big strait (which
was afterwards named in honour of Bass, on the recommendation of his
friend Flinders), and therefore Ta.smania (then Van Diemen's Land)
was an island.

Albatross Island — for so it was named by Flinders — is situated ofi
the north-western part of Tasmania, and is about two miles long.

Flinders records : " We had a fine breeze at east, and our covu-se was
directed for a small rocky island which lies W. i N. six miles from the
nortli point of the barren land. This island appeared to be almost white
with birds, and so much excited our curiosity and hope of procuring a
supply of food that Mr. Bass went a.shore in the boat, whilst I stood off
and awaiting his retimi.

" Mr. Bass returned at half-past two with a boat load of seals and
Albatrosses. He had been obliged to fight his way up the cliffs of the
island with the seals, and when arrived at the top, to make a road with
59

030 A'ESTS A.\D EGGS OF AX'STFALIAN BIRDS.

his club amongst the Albatrosses. Tliese bii'ds were sitting upon their
nests and almost covered the surface of the ground, nor did they any
othei-wise derange themselves for the new \'isitors than to pick at their
legs as they passed by."

Gould fii-st detected this Albatross as a new species off the south coast
of Tasmania, and had frequent opportunities of observing it during his
stay in Recherche Bay, at the southern entrance of D'Entrecasteaux
Channel, where he was windboiuid for nearly a fortnight. The birds
seldom approached his sliip near enough for a successful shot, as other
Albatrosses had done, which sivggested to him the name rauta, Cautious
or Shy Albatross. However, this may be a, case of misnomer, as the
naiTatives quoted hereafter may show. White-capped Albatross is at
once a more correct and distinctive name.

Gould was imder the impression that it was breeding on the Mew-
stone and other isolated rocks in the neighbourhood, as the plumage of
some of his specimens indicated that they had lately been engaged in
the task of incubation ; possibly so.

The lighthouse-keeper on Maatsuyker Island informed me that the
precipitous cliffs of Mewstone Island, which is six miles off, are covered
in siunmer with white objects, supposed to be Albatrosses. Mewstone
Island would be a difficult place to land on.

Following the days of Bass and Flindei's, some sailore and sealers
occasionally visited Albatross Rock. Captain David Finnaner, for
many years in the Victorian Harboui* Department, gave me one of his
bluntly characteristic and graphic accounts of how he once touched that
isolated rock. I longed to visit the place myself, but as I had already
taken three trips to islands in the tempest-tossed Strait of Bass, I
relinquished the task to other field naturalists. Messrs. D. Le Souef
and H. P. C. Ashwortli fii-st essayed and well perfonnod the risky task
and brought back Albatrosses, eggs, and photogi'aphs of the " rookeries "
— one pictiu'e being kindly taken by Mr. Le Sonef especially for this
book. They landed on the island 26th Nevember, 1894.

I cannot do better than quote Mr. Le Souefs own accovuit as it
appeared in the " Ibis " (1895) : " These handsome birds were nesting in
several small companies on different parts of the island : the largest
colony having about forty nests, and the smallest only six. They built,
in some instances, on the rocky ledges of the cliff, at various heights;
but the larger number were on the top of the island, near the edge of the
cliff. The rocky groiuid at the rookeiy was quite bare of vegetation,
and mostly covered with white g^ano. The male and female sit on the
nest in turn, and on one occasion I saw a male bird take the place of a
female, who- then flew off to sea.

" Tliere is vei-y little difference between the appearance of the male
and female — the grey colom-ation on the side of the neck being slightly
darker, and the yellow markings on the beak brighter in the male —
but I did not notice any material difference in their size. The breadth
across the wings, when stretched out, was eight ^fcet from tip to tip.
Frequently, when one bird is on the nest, its mate win be seen sitting
close alongside, and they cackle one tO' the other and rub their beaks
together. Again, when two strange birds meet, they stretch out their

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NESTS AXD ItGGS OF AUSTKA/./A.V h'/A'DS. g^l

necks, make a loud cackling noise, and, spreading- out their tails, lean
forward and put tlieir he;ids several times first on one side and then on
the other side of each otlier ; and when a bird makes its way through
the colony, cverj' sitting bird that it passes makes a lunge at it with open
beak, and it has to i-un the gaimtlet while passing through.

" The nests are situated at varying distances one from the other, from
a foot upwards, some on the gi'ound and othere again on the uneven
side or top of a point of rock. Some of the birds had evidently come
on shore to rest only, while a few of them had their heads tiu'ned back
and partially under their wings, and were asleep.

" Wlien one wished to fly, it had to walk to the edge of the cliff and
go off with a downward sweep ; but when the wind was blowing veiy
strong tlie bird could then rise, facing it, from a. point of rock. One
bird was found in a depression about 60 feet across and 30 feet deep,
with steep sides, and it could neither climb nor fly out, so, having caught
it, I climbed up the bank with the bird under my ami and took it back
to the ' rookeiT.' Tlieir nests had the appearance of being used year
after year, probably being only renovated each season. One unused
nest was seen ; it was in good preservation, although it had a little
vegetation gi-owing on it.

" This species was named the ' Shy Albatross ' by Gould ; but nothing
of the nature of shyness was noticed either at sea, or on land, for when
crossing Bass Strait the birds frequently came within a. few feet of the
vessel and settled on the water again and again twenty feet away, in
their endeavours to seciu'e the barracouta hook which was dragging
through the water. The hook was baited with a piece of wood and
red flannel, and they were easily caught witli a hook and line. Sir
Walter Buller was informed by a collector that these birds nested on
the Snares on high rocks,* and rose off their nests on being approached
and circled higli in the air ; but I think his informant must have mistaken
the bird, as thh Albatross cannot rise off its nest, unless under excep-
tional circiunstances. Those on this island took very little notice of
a visitor, and one could walk anywhere through the ' rookery ' without
disturbing them ; it was only with considerable difficulty and force that
they covild be made to leave their nests. A far more suitable name
would have been the ' Wliite-capped Albatross,' as the cap is pure
white, marked off by the dark shading on each side of the eye, and this
feature is very striking.

" On approaching very close to the birds they would partly stand
up on their nest, leaning backwards and apparently resting the tail on
the edge of the nest, and then facing the intruder. When one was
within two feet of them, they would utter a loud cackling noise, shaking
their heads up and down and opening and shutting tlieir beaks rapidly.
A considerable noise was made by the mandibles coming together, and
at the same time a strong-smelling oily secretion was thrown up. In
order to seciu-e an egg, the bealc of the bird was caught hold of with one
hand and the egg taken up with the other, and on stepping back the
beak was let go again ; the bird would sit or stand on its nest for some
time afterwards.

• Another variety [T. stilviiti].

g22 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

" The orange-coloured strip of bare skin which goes from the corners
of the mouth towards the back of the head was noticed only when the
bird was disturbed and opened its beak wide to eject the oily substance.
The use of it seems to be to enable the bird to open its mouth much
wider than it othei-wise could, for the piu-pose of letting the yoimg
bird put its head well inside the mouth of the parent when being fed.

" The birds often had difficulty in alighting on a particular spot when
the wind was blowing strongly on to their breeding-gi'ound from the
sea, as they always flew against the wind when desiring to alight, and
I have watched them sometimes try seven or eight times before they
could successfully accomplish their object. Tliey came up with con-
siderable force, holding their heads well back and stretching out their
expanded feet at the same time, and the fact of having their wings
half closed gave them a very ungainly appearance when alighting. If
there is only a light breeze they can alight easily enough, although they
often stumble before gaining a proper foothold. I noticed that when-
ever tliey flew off they always shook their tails from side to side a few
times, and also when they passed excreta while flying they did the same
thing.

" Only one egg is laid, and that probably during the first week in
October, and all the eggs hatch out within a few days of each other,
showing that the birds commence laying at nearly the same time.
About half the nests had newly-hatched young in them, and the eggs
taken had young ones just ready to hatch ; two addled eggs were
obtained. The young are very fat and helpless, and if held up by theii
legs a small amovnit of oil runs out of their mouths ; they are covered
with white down^ and their beaks are black. They generally lie down
in the nest, laying their head on one side, and at fii-st sight have the
appearance of being dead.

On a warm day the parent bird was often noticed partly standing
up in the nest and leaning backwards, so as to leave the chick uncovered
— I presume for the sake of coolness — and also to let the little one
sit up and move about in the nest.

" The bii'ds sat very closely on their single egg. This was kept
in a kind of longtudinal bag, bare of feathers, just below the breasts
bone, into which the egg fitted, and was consequently vei-y warm. Even
when the bird half stood up in the nest the egg could not always be
seen, but when the bird moved about the egg came down. The nests
being diy, the eggs kept fairly clean, most of them were freckled more
or less with reddish-brown surface-markings on the larger end. In
some cases these markings were minute, numerous, and almost continuous,
while in others they were much larger and darker, on a slightly reddish
ground, but there were various gradations between the two types. The
colom' could be washed off by a little friction."

In returning from the island, Mr. Ashworth had the misfortune
to lose his exposed photograpliic plates, and nearly his life, by the
capsizing of the dijigy. The following season he rcturaed to re-take
ins pictures, and this time was accompanied by Mr. J. Gabriel. They
started a month earlier than on (lie previous occasion. After waiting
eleven dnys under the Ice of an adjacent island for an opportunity of

NESTS AiW EGGS Ol- AUSTRALIAN. BIRDS. y33

landing on Albatross Rock, they were all but retiuTiiug to Melbom-ne
without atcomplishiug their task, so gi-cal ;uid so dangeroiis was the
swell dashmg upon the luiprotected sides of the rotky home of the
Albatrosses.

However, 1 give j\lr. Gabriel's concluding reuiwks of an interesting
but anxious trip, the account of which he read before the Pield
Natui-ahsts' Club of Victoria, 13th Januai-y, 1896 : " Early in the
morning of the 29th October we stai-ted for Albatross Island, and after
crossing the ' pot-boil,' north of the West Himter, we were not long in
approaching this lonely rock. Bold and rugged it is indeed, and doubly
so to-day, for the wind had changed round to the north and rolled a
nasty sea into the landing-place. We could see the Albatrosses sitting
on. their nests upon the shelving rocks, but after standing off and on
for some time in the hope of a change, we had to swallow oiu- disap-
pointment and retiUTi. The following day an easterly gale raged all
day, raising such a heavy swell that it was with little hope of success
that we stai-ted again at dawn on 31st October. The ' pot-boil ' was
very lively, and tossed oiu' little boat about like a cockle-shell. After
a couple of miles of this we despaired of getting on the rock, but as we
had the day before us we held on, and when within a few miles of the
island oui" skipper declared we would get on after all, we cheered up
considerably. Shortly after we were anchored amongst the kelp in
comparatively smooth water. Dreading the backwash of the cove
where the dingy was capsized last year, we scrambled on to the ledges
of an outlying rock, and, following a Penguin track, were soon through
the caves. In the gulchway we were siu-prised to see a Tasmanian
Flycatcher and a Bronze Cuckoo, with his resplendent gi-een back.
Climbing over the hill, the Black-cheeked Falcons showed by their clatter
that they had eggs, and a large Wedge-tailed Eagle soared away over-
head. We were rejoiced to fiad the Albatross ' rookery ' in full swing.
It was the beau ideal of a photogi-aphic day, with little wind and hght
fleecy clouds, and oui- artist lost no time in proceeding to work. As to
myself, I was soon arguing the point with the bii'ds r( possession of
eggs, the powerful mandibles on the one hand, and my foot and a bucket
on the other being the argumentative media. These beautiful birds
sit gi-acefuUy on their nests, but when distui-bed they floimder about
ill quite a ludicrous manner, strongly in contrast tO' then- glorious
appearance at sea. when they so majestically sweep tlu-ough the air on
expanded pinions. After its egg was taken the silly bii-d could not
make out where it had got to, and would put its head into the nest to
look for it."

It is but fair to record that in both trips to Albatross Island the
party was in charge of Captain Mullens, of Circular Head. Captain
Mullens also successfully landed Mr. A. E. Brent, of Tasmania, the
same season, after the second trip of the Victorian Naturalists.
Probably the fine White-capped Albatrosses, on their difficult to-get-at
rock, will be left alone for many seasons to come. The Govenunent of
Tasmania, on the advice of the Field Natvualists' Club of Victoria,
extended protection to the White-capped Albatross for five years,
commencing 1898.

034 A'ESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRAL/AN BIRDS.

Ml'. Brent was good enough to send me an account of a battle he
witnessed between a Wedge-tailed Eagle and a fine Albatross. He
says : " The Albatross was flying round just at the back of the large
' rookery ' and immediately over the deep gorge after passing through
number two cave, when the Eagle stnick her, and fastening to her, both
fell to earth about half way down the bank, rolling over each other to
the bottom. I made my way towards them, but before I reached the
spot the Eagle had made an entry just at the back of the Albatross's
head, and she was dead. From the start the Eagle had it all his own
way. I think this old wanior was used to his work, because more than
half a dozen fresh carcasses were found near the spot.'

The laying season for this species probably commences as early as
September, or possibly Augiist.

If it be true that in New Zealand this bird's place is taken
by ?'. salvini, then the tnie T. cautus breeds nowhere save on Albatross
Rock, at the western entrance to Bass Strait, and perhaps on Mewstone
Island, at the south coast of Tasmania.

It is with peculiar pleasiu-e I give as illusti-ations Mr. Le Souef's
pictures, " An Albatross Rookery " and " White-capped Albati'osses
Nesting."

695. — Thalassijgeron culminatus, Gould. — (620)
FLAT-BILLED ALBATROSS.

figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 41.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 451.
Previous Description of Eggs. — Emerson : Ornithologist and Oologist,
p. 21 (1886).

Geor/raiihical iDifitrihiitiotK — Seas of New South Wales, Victoria,
South and West Australia and Tasmania; also New Zealand and the
Southern Ocean in general, ranging to the Pacific coasts of Central
America.

iVc-Y. — Composed outwardly of tussock grass and mud, lined inside
with fine grass and feathers. Situated on the top of a rock or a loamy
plain. Dimensions in inches : external diameter at top 12, at base 18;
egg cavity, 10 across by 5 deep (Emerson).

Emjs. — Clutcli, one ; oval in form, smaller at one end ; both ends quite
blunt; colour, inclined tO' light creamy-white, with a ring of seemingly
fine, spattered, burnt sienna specks or spots, like those made by drawing
a brush of colour across a. stick, as a painter does to get the effect of
granite. They form a, ring about^ two inches broad round the larger end.
The centre of the ring runs together in the fine markings, making the
colour almost solid, and fading away from the outer edge almost to
needles' points. Dimensions in inches : 4-75 x 2-38 (Emerson). Accor-
d ng to Kutt-r : (1) 4-25 x 2-75, (2) 4-11 x 2-7.

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A'EsrS AXD KGGS 01' AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 53;

Ohservations. — Gould obsci-ved the Flat-billed or Grey-headed Alba-
tross (culminatuf) to be more plentiful in the Austi\ilian seas than else-
where. Numbere came under his notice during his voyage from Laun-
ceston to Adelaide, particularly off Capes Jervis and Northumberland.
It is a powerful bird, and dLfectly intermediate in size between the White-
capped Albatross ( D. niutiix ) and the Yellow-nosed (T. rhlororlnjiirhiix).
The specific differences of the three kinds were so marked, that he had
no difficulty, apparently, in distinguishing, them, even while on the wing.
But of com^se Gould was an expert.

Sir James Hector informed me that diu-ing a trip southwai-d in
February , 1893, he believed he saw the Flat-billed Albatrosses nesting
in groups among the Black-browed variety on, the great cliffs at Campbell
Island.

In the pages of the " Ornithologist and Oologist," Mr. W. Otto
Emerson, CaUfornia, gives liis description of an egg of the T. culmiiKiUm
from an example collected 12th Januaiy, 1880, by Captain Thomas
Lynch, at Diegos, Kavenen's Rocks, S. and E., fifty-two miles from Cape
Horn. The e^g was accompanied with the following interesting notes
by Dr. J. W. Detmiller : — " The nests ai'e veiy nicely and solidly built,
lasting two or three seasons, even in that fearful, climate. They are
built veiT closely together, and are probably often mistaken by one and
another of the birds, after the fashion of many sea birds. The nests
are high, to enable the long-winged creatures to rise easily on the wing,
which they cannot do on a level. The birds are veiy tame, allowing
themselves to be handled while sitting."

696. — Thalassogeron chlorukhynchus, Gmelin. — (C21)
YELLOW-NOSED ALBATROSS.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 42.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 451.

Geoyrdpliiral ,Di<trihution. — Seas of New South Wales, Victoria,
South and West Australia and Tasmania ; also New Zealand and the
Southern Ocean in general.

Xat. — Similar to those of the other members of the genus.

Et/i/.s-. — Clutch, one ; colour, dull-white, with single yellowish blotches,
probably resulting from dirt. Dimensions in inches : 4-0 x 2-28
(Kutter).

Observations. — The Yellow-nosed Albatross, like most of its .great-
winged congeners, sweeps the seas of the Southern Ocean. This species
came under Gould's observation for the first time ^n tlie 24th July,
1838, in latitude 30 deg. 38 min. S. and longitude 20 deg. 43 min. W.,
from which point until he reached Australia scarcely a day passed, without
the ship being visited by these birds, sometimes in considerable numbers.

936

NESTS AND EGOS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Recently two of these Albatrosses, either dead or dying, were picked
up on. the beach near the Nox'th-west Cape of Australia.

I quote two pages from Prof. Moseley's most interesting book,
" A Naturalist ou the ' Challenger, ' which refer to either the Flat-billed
or fellow-billed Albatross, and incidentally to other birds nesting on.
Nightingale Island, one of the Tristan d'Acunha Group, which was
visited 17th October, 1893.

The Molly Hawk is an Albatross about the size of a goose ; head,
tluoat, and under part pure white, the wings grey, and the bill black,
with a yellow streak on the top, and with a bright-yellow edge to the
gape, which extends right back under the eye. The yellow shows out
conspicuously on the side of the head. It is not thus shown in Gould's
coloured figures. iUe bird is extremely handsome. They take up
their abode in separate pairs anywhere about in the ' I'ookei-y,' or under
the trees, where there are no Penguins, which latter situation they
seem to prefer.

" They make a cyhndiical nest of tufts of gi-ass, clay, and sedge,
which stands up from the ground. The nest is neat and roimd. There
is a shallow concavity on the top for the ybird to sit on, and the edge
overhangs somewhat, the old bird undermining it, as the Germans said,
diu-iug incubation by pecking away the, tiu'f of wliich it is made.

" I measured one nest, which was 14 inches in diameter and 10 inches
in height. The nests when deserted and grass-gi'own make most con-
venient seats. The birds lay a single egg, about the size of a goose's
or somewhat larger, but elongate, with one end larger than the other,
as are all Albatross eggs.

" The egg is held in a sort of pouch while jthe bird is incubating.
Thus tlie bird has to be di'iven right off its nest before it will drop the
egg out of its pouch, and discover whether there is pne there or not.

" The bii'ds, when approached, sit quietly on their nests or stand by
them, and never attempt to fly ; indeed they seem, when thus bent on
nesting, to have almost forgotten the use of their wings

" The Albatrosses make tlieir nests sometimes right in the middle
of a Penguin road ; bvit the two kinds of bkds live perfectly happily
together. I saw no fighting, though, small as the Pengiiins arc, 1
think they could easily drive out the Molly Hawks if they wished it.

" The ground of the ' rookei'y ' is bored in all chrections by the holes
of Prions and Petrels, which thvis live under the Penguins. Their
holes were not so numerous at Inaccessible Island as here. The holes
add immensely to the danger of travei-sing a ' rookery,' since, as one is
making a iiish, the ground is apt to give way and give one a fall into the
bhu'k filtiiy mud, and amongst a lot of fiu'ious birds, which have then
full chance at one's eyes and face.

" Besides the Molly Hawks and Petrels, one or two pairs of Skuas
liad nests on a few mounds of earth in the ' rookery.' How tliese
moimds came there I could not undei-stand.

" The Skua's eggs ai'c closely like those of the Lesser Black-backed
Gull, and two in niunber. The birds swooped about our heads as we
robbed their nests, but were not nearly so fierce a.s those we encountered
further south. All round their nests were scattered skeletons of Prions.

IVESTS AND LGGS OF AVSTRAr.lAN BIRDS. y3;-

'' I, with three sailors canying my botaniail cases, attempted to scale
the Peak ; we had a desperate straggle through long gi-ass aud Penguins,
and at last liad to come back beaten, and make for the Phylica patches,
where the ground was clear. Thence 1 fought my way through the
gniss up to the lower ridge of the island; but, though there were no
Penguins on this slope, I never hacl harder work in my Ufe.

" I had to stop every ten yards or so for breath, the giowth of
the gi-ass was so dense. My men lost me and never reached the top.
On the simimit 1 found the rest of the party which had come on shore,
full of the hiU'dships they had suffered in getting through the " rookeiy,'
and looking forward with no pleasure to tiie prospect of going backiagain
through it."

697. — Phcebetria fuliginosa, Gmelin. — (623)
SOOTY ALBATROSS.

Pigur;. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 44.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxv., p. 453.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Layard ; Saunders : Trans. Roy.
Soc, vol. clxviii., p. 165 (1878) ; Kidder and Coues : Smith-
sonian Miscell. Coll., vol. xiii., p. 12 (1878); Buller: Birds
of New Zealand, vol. ii., p. 206 (iSSS) ; Verrill : Trans.
Connect. Ac, vol. ix., p. 4,5 (1895).

Geoyrapliical Distribution. — Seas of New South Wales, Victoria,
South and West Australia and Tasmania; also New Zealand and the
Southern Ocean in general.

Nest. — Similar to those of the other Albatrosses ; a small, low, conical
mound, constructed of the surrounding earth mixed with grass and other
debris. Not m colonies, but separate, on cliffs or I'ocks. Dimensions :
about 9 inches in height by 18 inches in diameter at base; egg cavity,
about 9 inches across by 1^ inches deep.

J^yy^- — Clutch, one ; inchned to oval in shape, or more compressed at
one end; texture of shell somewhat coarse, but fine compared with the
eggs of the other species of Albatrosses ; surface without gloss ; colour,
dull white — at fii-st, which soon gets soiled all over by dirt in the nest —
with a faint zone or wash of reddish markings round the apex. Dimen-
sions in inches of an example from Kerguelen Island: 3-88 x 2-68; of
tlu-ee from Macquarie Island: (1) 4-12 x 2-56, (2) 4-0 x 2-62, (3)
3-87 X 2-62.

Observations. — This dusky-colom-ed Albatross is one of the most
familiar of its family, and is seen by almost eveiy voyager to and from
Australia.

Goidd states : " The cuneated form of the tail, which is peculiar to
this species, together with its shght and small legs and more delicate
stracture, clearly indicate that it is the most aerial species of the genus,

938

NESTS AND LGGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

and accordingly we find that in its actions and mode of flight it differs
ver}' considerably from all the other i species of Albatross, its aerial
evolutions being fai- more easy, its flight much higher, and its swoops
more rapid ; it is, moreover, the only species that passes directly over
the ship, which it frequently does in blowing weather, often poising
itself over the mast-head, as if inquisitively viewing the scene Selow;
at I this moment it oflere so inviting a mark for the gxmner, that it often
forfeits its life."

Several of the scarce eggs of the Sooty Albatrosses were collected for
me by jVIr. J. R. Bm'ton on the bold west coast of Macquarie Island,
'iuey were taken about the middle of February last and were fresh. The
nests were situated singly on the sheltered sides of hills on the steep faces
of rock at about 800 or iJOO feet above sea level, and very duncult to reach
on account of the rotten rocks rendeiiug foot hold insecm-e.

LatJiam states that it breeds on Tristan d'Acunlia. Mr. George
Comer, who collected one skin, a. skeleton, and ten eggs, on Gough Island,
and one t^gg on South Georgia, states : " It is the most dilhcult bird of all
to get at. They lay separately (not in ' rookeries '), usually on chii's
or projecting rocks. The nests are built small and low, of grass and
mud. They commence laying by the middle of September, and lay one
egg ; but when killed have a nimiber of small eggs inside. While
sitting on then- nests, they keep up a continual cry, similar to that of
a young goat. The beak is dark, with a yellow streak on each side.
Wliite rim on eyelids ai-ound, the eye."

Diuing the voyage of the " Challenger," which, by the way, visited
Melboiu-ne and Sydney, 1874, Professor Moseley mentions that when
on Marion Island, end of December, 1873, four or five Sooty Albatrosses
were obsei-ved high up, at about an elevation of 500 feet, soaring over
the tops of the clifl's, where they were probably uestaug. This ,bii'd,
he says, is continually to be seen about cliffs and higher moimtain
slopes, and seems never to nest low down like the Molly Hawk and
Wandering Albatross.

The Rev. A. E. Eaton^ of the British Transit of Venus Expedition
to Kerguelen, 1874-5, respecting the Sooty Albati'oss, wi-ote : " The
Sooty Albatross is common in Royal Sound. The hills near the sea, on
the mainland and islands, present occasionally places suitable for its
nidification. As a nile^ the nests are built in the most sheltered situa-
tions that can be found, at the foot of precipitous teiTaces of volcanic
rock, which are so characteristic of the neighboui'hood. Here and there
recesses hollowed out at the base of these ten-aces and cliffs are thoroughly
protected by the overhanging rock from wind and rain. In dry nooks
of this nature 1'. fii/ii/iiiusa constructs its nests of pieces of adjacent
plants (especially Festucu erectaj, disposed in the form^ of a low, tiim-
cated cone, hollowed out at the top. The nests appear to be used many
years in succession, as the original materials of several that were
o.xaminod seemed to have been reduced by age to vegetable mould.
Tho old fabrics are re-lined with fresh, diy gi-ass when the, birds return
at tho commencement of the breeding season. Tlie position of her nest
is liable to be betrayed to pei-sons walking within sight of the female
when she is sitting, for every now and then, while slie is observing their

NESTS AND EGGS OF AOSTKAUAiV BIRDS. g3g

movements, she will utter her cry, and thus reveal, her situation. If
anyone goes near her she assumes a rather formidable attitude, and
niffling up the feathers of the neck, snaps fiercely and loudly with her
beak at the intiiidrr, the noise resembling that made by a large dog in
catching flies. But notwithstanding her menacing gestures, the egg
can be secured (if it be desired) without displacing her fi'om the nest.
A pocket handkerchief presented to her with the left hand, or a hat
placed gently on her head, will completely engross her attention while
the egg is being abstracted from beneath her with the right ; and she
will afterwards remain in the nest complacently watching her visitors
retreat."

Nearly a dozen nests were taken by the EngUsh Expedition. A
bird was killed on the 23rd October that probably would have laid that
night. Another female subsequently laid in the same nest. A nestling
about a ^week old was secxu'ed about the beginning of February. On
the 24th October, members of the American Expedition captui'ed two
Duskv Albatrosses on nests, but there were no eggs. The birds' loud
Peacock-like scream of " pee-aiT " is believed to be peculiar to the
breeding season. On the 2nd November one egg and the parents were
secui-ed, the male being perceptibly the larger of the two birds. Subse-
quently one or two other nests were observed.

The illustration of the " Sooty Albatross on Nest," from the out-of-
the-way Kerguelen Land, by Mr. Robert Hall, makes a imique and
appropriate pair with the " Cape Petrels on their Nest."

Q.O NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ORDfcR-PTALATE^.

FAMILY— IBIDIDyE : IBISES.

698. — Ibis Molucca, Uuvier. — (539)

Tlircskiornia strictipcnnis, Gould.

WHITE IBIS.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, £ol., vol. vi., pi. 46.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 9.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883), and Nests and Eggs .-^ustn. Birds, pi. 2, fig. 539 (1883),
also Victorian Naturalist (1S91); North: Rec. Austn. Mus.,
vol. 1., p. iiS (1891).

Gi'oyraphical Distribution. — Australia in general; also New Guinea
and Molucca Islands.

Nest. — A shallow structure, made, in the first instance, by the birds
trampling down the rushes of a swamp into a platform, to which are
added Hags, grasses, in some instances green (Eucali/pfusJ branchlets.
Dimensions, from 12 to 18 inches across. The nests are in companies
and sometimes built on polygonum bushes, after the manner of the
Straw-necked Ibis.

Egffs. — Clutch, three to foui-, occasionally five ; vary in shape from
round oval to oval ; textiu-e of shell coarse ; surface has faint trace of
gloss ; colour, white more or less soiled with nest stains. Inside
lining of shell beautiful hght gi-een. Dimensions in inches of a proper
clutch: (1) 2-6 X 1-68, (2) 2-56 x 1-74, (3) 2-5 x 1-69, (4) ::-5xl-67; of
a stouter-sized set: (1) 2-62 x 1-82, (2) 2-62 x 1-84, (3) 2-59 x 1-8.

Observations. — As its specific name implies, this fine bird is found
as far north as the Moluccas. It was called Ibis iiiahircn by Cuvicr
as far back as 1829.

The White Ibis needs no description. However, it may be stated
the bill is heavier and more curved, and altogether the bird is slightly
larger than the Straw-necked species. The liead and upper portion of
the neck are naked and black, while a few black plumes adorn the end
of the back ; there arc also some pink ornamentations of the skin 011
the back of the neck. What is stated with regard to the habit^s of
the Straw-necked Ibis equally applies to the White bird ; in fact,
the two species are frequently observed in company. One

marked difference, as Gould pointed out, may, however, be noticed, that

WHITE IHIS KOOKERV.

Ftom a Photo by the Author.

NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. Q41

while the Straw-necked loves the plains as well as swamps, the other
variety ooiifmos itself solely to swamps and other wet localities. The
White Ibis is especially interesting, because it is closely allied to or is the
Australian representative of the sacred Ibis (I. cethiopica) of Eg}'pt.
It is interesting to look at these handsome birds (the Aiisti%iUan
variety) and dwell upon the circumstance that by a series of evolutions
extending down through ages, or by local adaptations, our Ibis is only
slightly different fi-om the very bird which from time immemorial was
held in such reverence by the ancient Egyptians, and was deemed
worthy of being embalmed. Egyptologists have found many mummies
of the Ibis in the old Egyptian burial-places, having been presei-ved
for over 3,000 years.

Tliis is the only species of whose breeding habits I have had per-
sonal experience, and an exceedingly interesting experience it proved.
It was the 3rd December, 1890. My friend, Mr. George H. Morton,
of Murray Meadows, and I decided to proceed to the home of the Ibises
immediately after tea, in the cool of the evening. Reaching the other
-side of the river (Murray) we haul oiu- " flatt}' or dingy over a narrow
strip of land into the swamp beyond. Meirilj' we pole our tiny boat
over the clear, miiTor-hke surface of the lagoon, which is so perfectly
transparent that beautiful forms of aquatic weeds are readily distin-
guished gi-owing below. White lilies, with small circular leaves, float
upon the tranquil face of the water. This placid sheet of water appears
hundreds of acres in extent, broken here and there with clumps of dai'k-
green rushes in contrast with the seared and sunburnt rises on the
further shore. We steer for slightly shoaling gi-ound literally crowded
with game and other water-fowl. Soon the scene changes. Black
Swans quitting the water belaboiu- the suiiace with white-pinioned
wings. Black Duck, Shovellers and Teal rise with quacking notes and
wliirr of wings, and Stilt Plovers with puppy-like barking notes. How
interesting to watch the vaiious flocks wheeling past 1 Now again
swiftly repassing — but at a safer distance ; then they disperse in
detachments. Pacific Herons, with leisurely flight, and a flock of about
a score of Nankeen Herons, are likewise on the wing, and surmounting
all are companies of Straw-necked Ibises gracefully ascending in spiral
circles so high that the roseate hue from the western sky behind the
dark fringe of g^um-trees is beautifully reflected from the snow-white
breasts of these birds. We pole to deeper water in the centre of the
swamp, towards a large growth of bulrushes. Approaching these,
another wonderful revelation confronts us. The whole place is alive
and croaking with Ibises of two species — ^the Straw-necked and the
White. Tlie dark-coated. Straw-necked Ibises rise first, in companies
of about half-hundreds, and fly away. The White species, evidently
nesting, is reluctant to follow suit. But they are compelled to move,
too, when we shoot the prow of oiu- boat into the rashes amongst their
nests. The nests are picturesquely grouped on iiTegular steps or
terraces formed by the tops of the rushes being split or fi-ayed out,
then trampled or matted together into platforms to within a few inches
of the water. Hastily looking at those nearest to us we see a nest with
five eggs, another with fom-, and foiu- with three each. Out of the

Q42 NKSTS AND EGGS 07- AUSTRATJAN lilllDS.

WAtTfin, ot nc»tH on the rookery, only a f'tw arc o'cupiirl wiili young —
fielplcw, not, many ihtyn old, Tli';ir tic,;wJ« an; l>l;u;k, and Uh' ftinkiMh
Hkin of U\<: r<;fil- of l/h'.-ir f<0'Jii;H hFiowm ntronfjly lhrouf.4i a nio'lcrate
roatinjj of whiU: fJown. Th<; waU;r li'^n; iw ahoilt four or five fi;<:(, dct-p,
t,ho j>at,(;h of ru«h<;» tioinjf about half-an-;u,T(; in extent. The birdw have
trampled down the norl/h and wewtern rnarginH for their nurHcry, leaving
th<! greater (JOfiion of th'; bulruxlien Mt,aiiding, whieh appears U> afford an
exeelient protcHJon iim a break wind, UarkneHH now (-re<-pM over the wat<;r,
and moivjuitocH heeome exeei;dinj.dy niiin<;roui and (ieree, I'orpliyrio
Cootii wreech defiantly at uh from oiit of the reedx, hut the MW<:et alarm
notew of a floek of pawwinff I'loverw, the trumpetinj^ of thi; Nativi;
(JompanionH in the dJMtanee, to((ether with the booming ba«M of UitternH
at variouH parts of the vast nwamp, fall aw charming muHic on our earn,
('arefully now we move, and peiring through the gloom Hteer for the
higher end of the Hwamp, where, fortunately, we eawily ulrike tin; riviir,
and ifwiftly gliding with a r.ipid current on a broad litream for about
a mile in the darknewM, we reach home in Kafety,

Visiting the rookery two KcanonK aflcrwardx, on tlir; Sth November,
we f;btained only one egg fre»h. Kvidently thi^ birdM wr;re about to
lay, for eleven dayn later we took two egg« c.'ich from two ncHtH, and
thre(! eggH each from othrir two nentK, while in anothf^ part of the
nurHcry we took four ncHtu, ea/:h conlaining three eggH either fr'^nh or
on (-he j)oint of turning. Again, on the 7th iJeconber, Mr, Moi-lon,
vi::iti/ig the rookery, wliicli wa« then in full Mwing, counted in one group
of liCMtH four containing tlirc-i; eggn efu:h, I wo willi two, and orje with
four, all appar(!ntly frcHh.

On another occa«ion fHth November, \H'.)'2), in company wiilj om
good (ielrj naturalint, Mr. Joi(e])h fJ/ibrie], I ag;iin enjoyed an oj)por
(unity of viiiiting anotln-i' Whi(e Ibi-t rookery fur (her down (he rivr;r,
Thi:! ne'iting ])lacf: wait not ho ex(<;nMive an the one previounly deneribefl,
being only a c,luMt,er of five ncHtK, thiH time in cum burigie (Ti/plin ) bedx.
An UHUal, tfie n(!HtH vii'Ti: built near to (he HUrface of the water, and to
l-h'! maf,t,ed reedn wa« ;uldi'd a picnt.iful mipply of eucalypt t)ranchletM,
f>aying operal/iouH had only commenced, for (fieri! wnw not mori? (,h«n a
pair <rf oggH in any of the neM(,H.

Hei! illuntratioiiH, " A Wlii(,e Ibi;* Itookei y ' .md " NcHt of t,lie
Wlli(e, \\m."

Of)0. ''.MM'IIIHIH VI'INII Ol.f.lK, J.imc'ion (U'.W)

.S'I'IfAVV NKCKKI) IMIH,

I'inurr. — ffOiild : IliriU o( Aiinlriilia, fol., vo( vi , pi /^t,.

Hfjirfner.--V.;\\, lljrilt Uril, Miin,, vol, »xvi,, p ii

I'rniioH* tJeuripllotis of Hi'j:^- I.iichm : Vic(oiiiiM Niiliiriili'il (|HH|);
(Jiiiiiplirll ; Vicloriiiii N;iliir;iliil (1KH7); Noilli Ainlii .Mie,
':.,!,, p (!■' (iH^o).

Ihiiiirii phifdl Dinlrihiil'titii . VVIioN' of Aiin(iali,i and 'I'.i iii.iiiia
((U!cideii(al^ ; alito New Ouinea,

0!

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AZ'STRALIAN BTRDS. 543

Ne^t. — Usually placed in companies in a swamp, just above the water
in reed beds or on polvgonum bushes — portions of the reeds or bushes,
as the case may be, being broken down into a platform, wliich is
augmented with sticks, rushes, &c.

Eggs. — Clutch, three to foui-, occasionally five; roundish oval in
shape ; texture of shell decidedly coarse ; surface shght trace of gloss
and pitted; colour, dull-white at fii-st, but becomes more or less soiled
with nest stains. Inside lining of the shell gi-eenish. Dimensions
in inches of a chitch : (1) 2-68 x 1-85, (2) 2-49 x 1-82, (3) 2-46 x 1-8, (4)
2-42 X 1-76.

Ohservation.t. — This Ibis is probably the most common variety, having
been observed in every State of Australia, wliile examples have
been taken in New Guinea. Without going into a tecluiical
or detailed description of tliis viseful bird, its general appear-
ance may be stated as dark bronzy -green or pvirple on the upper surface
of the body, the under surface being pure white. Tlie head and com-
paratively slender bill, which is slightly ciuved, are black, with eyes to
match. The legs are brownish, rimning into a pinlrish colour at the
thighs. The birds are adorned with a tuft of straw-like feathers,
which hang from the neck (hence the common name. Straw-necked),
the singular appendage being smaller in the female. Tlie total length
of a bird is about 28 inches, including the bill, 8 inches. At times the
Straw-necked Ibis may be seen perambulating the plains in quest of
grasshoppers, insinuating its long sickle-shaped bill into cricket holes,
or wading knee-deep in lagoon or billabong in search of frogs, shelled
molluscs, &c. During sustained flights the flocks arrange themselves
into a string, or in the form of a V or other letter, and when fljnng high,
as they usually do, the Straw-necked variety, on account of its white
breast, can hardly be distinguished from the White Ibis. In Gould's
time, after a severe drought, in 1839, he found the Straw-necked Ibis
in such abundance on the Liverpool Plains, New South Wales, that to
compute the number of birds in a single flock was simply impossible.
When feeding upon the ground, he further remarked that the bii-ds
packed closely, and the downward action of the bills and the upward
movement of the tails imparted to the whole a curiously agitated
appearance.

To Mr. D. Le Souef I am indebted for a perfect set of eggs of tliis
Ibis. Mr. Le Souef never does anything by halves — in addition to
the specimens, he gave me the benefit of his field observations regar-
ding the large rookery he Nnsited this year (1900) in Eiverina, New
South Wales. Amongst Ws tropliies were some very interesting snap-
shots of flocks of Ibis on the wing.

On accoimt of the favourable season, he estimated that no less than
100,000 birds had congi-egated to breed in a swamp about foiu- hundi-ed
acres in extent. Tlie swamp was about three feet deep, and more or
less covered with Polygonum bushes. These the birds trampled down
into rough platforms to within six or nine inches of the water, and
constructed thereon gi-een twig nests about six inches across by two

044 NESTS AND EGGS OF M'STRALIAN BIRDS.

inches deep. Tlie bulk of the nests had no hning, but a few were
lined with the yellow flowers from an annual giowing on the plains.
About thirty nests were frequently seen on one clump of bushes, while
smaller clumps supported perhaps from three to a dozen nests, there-
fore the whole rookery appeared to be composed of detached companies
of from three to thirty brooding pairs.

Many of the birds started nesting on tlie 8th September. As
the)' arrived in variously sized companies, so they seemed to choose a
suitable bush, and, having prepared it and built their nests, commenced
laying about the same time.

This swamp had not been used as a breeding place by the Ibis
since 1894 (the last good wet season); but in 1896 it was pai-tially
filled with water, when a large niunber of these birds appeared for the
purpose of nesting. However in about a fortnight after the eggs
were laid, the water dried off and caused the birds to suddenly desert
their nests and leave the district altogether. " It is an ill wind that
blows nobody any good." The Ravens then took possession, and
witliin two days every egg on the rookery was devoured.

September to December constitute the chief breeding months.
In 1892 these Ibises were numerous in many of the southern parts
of Victoria, notably Wenibee, Oakleigh, Western Port, &c. Tliey
appeared again in 1897. Both seasons were exceedingly dry in the
interior. Dming the fonner year, from Point Cloates, West Austraha,
Mr. Tom Carter wrote : " Immense flocks of Straw-necked Ibis appeared
here last March (1892), when the drought broke up. Tliey are now
going away. Tliey appear to feed almost entirely on grasshoppers.
It was a fine sight to see gi'oat flocks of the birds coming in from all
sides at sundown to sleep on the bare drift sandliills just behind my
house, and again at early dawn to see them going away in mobs to feed."

700. — Plegadis falcineli.us, Linnreus. — (540)
GLOSSY IBIS.

Figure. — Gould ; Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 47.

Reference. — Cat. Hirds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 29.

Previous Dacriptions of Eggs. — Legge : Birds of Ceylon, p. 11 1
(1880); Campbell: Southern Science Record (1883); North:
Austn. Mus. Cat., app. (1890) ; Hume — Gates : Ne.'^ts and Eggs
Indian Birds, vol. iii., p. 231 (iSgo).

Geographical Distribution . — Australia in general and Tasmania, also
Now Guinea, and through the Austro-Malayan Archipelago to Asia
and Europe; Africa; a portion of Eastern North America.

Nest. — Constructed of medium-sized sticks or bunches of leaves, piled
up about a foot high in the forked branches of a tree growing in or
near water. The nests arc in small companies or in a rookery, some-
times associated with those of Spoonbills, Connorants, &c.

NESTS AXD EGGS Of AUSTRALIAIV BIRDS.

945

Ef/gs:. — Clutch, tlu-ee to four ; oval in shape ; texture of shell coarse ;
surface very slightly glossy ; colour, cold or deep bluish-green. Di-
mensions in inches of odd examples: (1) 2-12 x 1-45, (2) 2-09 x 1'44,
(3) 20 X 1-4. (Plate 25.)

Ohncrrnfionfi. — This Ibis is well named " Glossy," from the bronze-
gi-een and pm-plish reflections of the feathers on the lower part of the
back and wings, these resplendent colours being enhanced by the rest
of the plumage of the bird, which is rich chestnut. Altogether it is
a lovely creature, smaller and more slenderly built than its other two
compeers. The total length of a specimen is about 21 inches, including
5 inches for a bill. The Glossy Ibis is somewhat of a cosmopolitan ;
in addition to being foimd in Australia, its habitat extends to Asia,
Europe, and Africa, and a part of Nortli America. Indeed, it is one
of the identical species that the ancient Egyptians so highly venerated.
Unlike the other two kinds, this bird nests in trees and lays dark
bluish-green eggs.

To Mr. K. H. Bennett belongs the honour of first talung the eggs
of the Glossy Ibis in Australia. The following is his descriptive note
to Mr. A. J. North on the occasion — " On the 22nd October, 1S89,
whilst swimming about in a large depression on the plains, filled with
water by the late heavy rains, and thickly overgrown with box-trees
(a species of Eucalyptus), in quest of the eggs of Spoonbills (Plataha
flavipes), I noticed a Glossy Ibis flhis falcitie//i(s ) fly off a nest, but
as I had never heard of this bird breeding here, I did not take much
notice of the occurrence, tliinking that the Ibis had been merely perched
vipon the nest, although I thought at the time it appeared very different
from those of the Herons and Spoonbills. After swimming about for
some time and obtaining several Spoonbills' eggs, I returned to land,
and in doing so passed the tree in which T had noticed the Ibis, and
again saw it fly oflt the nest, and at once concluded it was the nest of
the Ibis after all. On ascending the tree (the branch the nest was
placed on being not more than eight or ten feet from the water)
I foimd that such was the case, and it contained one freshly-laid egg,
wliich I imfortunately broke whilst swimming to land. On the 2nd
November I again visited this swamp or depression, in tlie hopes of
obtaining more Ibises' eggs, and was so fortunate as to obtain six,
three of which were from the nest from which I took one on the 22nd
ultimo. A fuiiher seaixh revealed another nest, which also contained
three eggs, but which were considerably larger than those previously
obtained, so much so that had I not seen the bird fly off the nest
I should have been in doubt as to their identity, but on this point there
was no possibihty of mistake, for the eggs being in a somewhat advanced
stage of incubation, the old bird evinced a gi-cat reluctance to quit the
nest, and allowed me to approach almost within arm's length before
she did so. The two nests were placed in three or more upright
pronged forks of the branches of small box-trees, and were both com-
posed of bunches of box leaves piled up on the forks to the height of
about a foot, the top being slightly hollowed out, but without any
lining. On the 26th November I again visited this swamp, and found
60

946

NESTS Ah'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

two more nests of the Ibises, both of which contained young lately
hatched (one three, the other four), covered with bhick down. One of
the nests from which I had taken the eggs on the 2nd inst. had in the
meantime been appropriated by the little Pink-eared Duck (Malncor-
hynchus memhranaceus), and now contained five Duck's eggs, enveloped
in the usual manner in a mass of down."

Colonel W. V. Legge, in writing from Ceylon to Mr. Allan
O. Hume, remarks : " I fomid the Glossy Ibis nesting at the end of
March, 1872, in thorny trees gi-owing round a small tank in a wild part
of the south-east of the island; there were, I should say, about half-
a-dozen pairs of the birds present at the heronry, and they were nesting
partly in company with the Spotted-bellied Pelican and Pelican Ibises,
and partly with Spoonbills and Little Cormorants. The nests were
placed ou the lateral, lower branches of the trees, and were of the same
size as those of the Little Coniiorant.

" I regret to say that at the date, the 25th of March, that I dis-
covered this heronry, the young of the Glossy Ibis were all hatched
and well grown, so tliat I failed to procure eggs of the species. The
young perched on branches contiguous to, or stood on, their nests, and
when I attempted to catch them, scrambled out of the way with con-
siderable agility. I, however, caught one or two, but I was less
fortunate with them than with the young of other species that I brought
away, for I found them dead on the following morning. "

FAMILY— PLATALEID^ : SPOONBILLS.

701. — Platalea regia, Gould. — (541)
BLACK-BILLED SPOONBILL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 50.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. .(7.

Previous Description of Eggs. — North : Proc. Linn. .Soc, N.S. Wales,
2nd ser., vol. X., p. 2iiS (1895).

Geographiral Dixfrihufion. — Australia in general, except West;
also New Zealand (accidental), probably New Guinea and some of the
Austro-Malayan Islands.

Next. — Flat, open ; composed of reeds trampled down, with the
additions of twigs, &c., and situated in a swamp. Sometimes con-
structed like that of a Heron in the upper branches of a tree. Dimen-
sions, about 24 inches across.

Eggs. — Clutch, three to five ; long oval in shape, or compressed
towards one end ; texture coarse ; sm"face, slight trace of gloss and
minutely pitted ; colour, dull or chalky-white, sometimes without
markings, but usually moderately spla.shcd witli reddish-brown, most of
the markings being round i\w apox. Dimensions in inches of a clutch :

NESTS AA'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 547

(1— sparingly marked) 2-63 x 1-67, (2— with markings) 2-58 x 1-73,
(3 — without markings) 2-53 x 1-71, (4 — witliout marldngs) 2-53 x 1-69.

OlLiirvfitions. — The Royal or Black-billod Spoonbill is at once dis-
tingiiishcd from the other Australian spcdes by its black face and bill,
besides being the smaller bird. It is a tolei-ably common species in
its peculiar haunts, especially in Northern Australia, and may be often
seen fraternising with its cousins, the Ibises and the Yellow-legged
Spoonbills.

During my visit to Northern Queensland, I witnessed an interesting
sight — a flock of these birds perched on a dead tree. How oddly the
black bill, face and legs contrasted with the pure white plumage of the
birds! The long, flat bill, about one tliird the total length of the
bird, looked decidedly awkward to handle, and appeared sometimes to
be in the way, however useful an appendage for prospecting the murky
mud of marshy places.

This Spoonbill is occasionally met with in southern parts, notably
Riverina. Tlie late Mr, Gilbert Bateman infonned me he once found
a nest of this species containing five eggs, during the season 1889, in
the reed-beds of Moira Lake.

In describing eggs from the same locality, Mr. A. J. North attaches
an interesting account (received, with specimens, through Mr. James
Kershaw, of the National Museum, Melbourne) by Mr. H. G. Everard.
Mr. Everard's note is as follows : " While Duck shooting, Christmas
Day, 1893, on one of the swamps along the banks of the River Murray,
about sixty miles above Echuca, and when nearing an Ibis rookery,
the man who was poling the boat drew my attention to a bu-d fl}ring
with the Wliite Ibis which we had disturbed, at the same time inform-
ing me that the bird was almost a stranger in those parts, and that he
had not seen a specimen for the previous four or five years. As it
would not leave the spot, but continued flying in a circle, we thought
there might possibly be a nest near at hand, so we concealed oiu' boat
in a bed of reeds and watched. After a little while all the Ibises, and
lastly the bird which I now recognised to be a Spoonbill, settled on an
adjacent bed of reeds. We approached as noiselessly as possible,

and I was successful in shooting it. Upon examining the place, we
found the nest of the Spoonbill built amongst those of the White Ibis.
It was an open, flat structure, composed of broken-down reeds and
twigs, measuring two feet across, and was placed about three feet above
the water. Tlie eggs, three in number, were in an advanced state of
incubation. All the nests of the Ibis contained young birds from about
one to two weeks old."

Mr. S. W. Jackson has favoured me with the following note :
" Black-billed Spoonbill. Clutch of foiu- eggs was found in a swamp
on Nicholson River, North Queensland, on 25th April, 1898. Wliite
Ibises were breeding on the same swamp. The Spoonbill was twice
flushed from the nest before the eggs were taken. Nest was simply the
reeds bent down into a platform a little above water-mark, and eggs
laid thereon. The eggs were slightly incubated. Four more Black-
billed Spoonbills were observed on the same swamp, but although they
were watched carefully, no other nests were found."

g.g NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRAUAN BIRDS.

702. — Platibis fi.avipes. Oonld, — (542)
YELLOW-LEGGED SPOONBILL.

I'igure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 40.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 51.

Previous Descriflions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.
Wales, vol. vii., p. 54 {1882) ; Campbell : Southern Science
Record (1S83).

Geoc/rapltical Biafrihutia)!. — Australia in genenl.

Nest. — Constructed of sticks, lined inside with leaves, and usually
situated in timber standing in a swamp or lagoon.

Er/(/x. — Clutch, four ; oval in shape, or more compressed at one end;
texture of shell coarse ; surface slightly glossy and rough ; colour, dull
white, more or less soiled with nest stains. Dimensions in inches of a
pair: (1) 2-87 x 1-93, (2) 2-78 x 1-9, These eggs resemble those of the
Straw-necked Ibis, but are slightly larger ; moreover, the inside lining
of the shell is pale-yellow, whereas the lining of the eggs of the Ibis
is greenish.

Ohnervationx. — This large and odd-looking bird has been found in
Queensland; New South Wales, Victoria, and South Austraha, and,
no doubt, also further west. The plumage is pure white. The
curious spoon-shaped bill, which is 7i inches in length, is yellowish,
legs and feet are the same colour, likewise the eyes. The

total length of the bird is 38 inches. Like the Ibis, when severe

droughts occur in the far interior, the Spoonbills quit their usual haimts.
and approach the sea-board. One was procured not far from. Melbourne
during the dry season of 1897. Its plumage seemed soiled with the
red dust of the interior.

The eggs in my collection were kindly presented to me by Mr. Crisp, a
surveyor. He took them during October, 1883, from a solitary nest in a
swamp near Edenhopo, Victoria. However those Spoonbills usually
breed in small families and in company with other species of birds. The
Spoonbill's eggs in the collection of Mv. Charles French, junr., were also
taken in Western part of Victoria. His collector (Mr. H. Davis) states
they were taken from an open stick nest lined with leaves. The nest was
placed in a red-gum (Euatlypfux) tree in the centre of a lagoon or
lake. In the same tree was another nest containing four young. In
1889, on Berrimagad, Rivcrina, Mr. G. Bateman noticed Spoonbills
breeding in the same swamp with Straw-necked Ibis. In the " Pro-
ceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales, " vol. vii. (1882),
the late Mr. K. H. Bennett gave a gi-aphic account of nesting outs
amongst Spoonbills, incidentally mentioning other species of brooding
birds, which he enjoyed in a favourite resort for water-fowl in the
Lachlan district (New South Wales). 1879. He concluded thus: —
" Having occasion about two years subsequently to revisit my father's
station, ' Yandembali,' from whidi Ihi.'; swamp is distant only a few

iVESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 94^

miles, I availed myself of the oppoituuity to pay another visit to the
breeding places of the Spoonbills, ;uid as I felt siu-e in the event of
the heronry being still occupied, I should tliis time be successful in
obtaining eggs, 1 took a small bag in which to stow my spoil.
On arrival at the place I found that, owing to the recent
heavy rains, the whole swamp was converted into a lake, but, to
my great satisfaction, I saw the elimip of trees was still tenanted by
the Spoonbills. To tie up my horse and strip off my clothes was but
the work of a few minutes, and taking my bag I stai-ted. For some
distance the water was shallow, reacliing to my waist, but this was
decidedly the worst of the trip, for the ground was covered with a
dense growth of terribly thorny plant, known in the district a* ' roley-
poley ' bushes, which it was imixissible to avoid, and of which I still
retain a Uvely recollection. As the water deepened, I took to swim-
ming, and thus got clear of the ' roley-poleys,' and with the exception
of encountering a few snags and stumps, made a rapid and uneventful
voyage to within a short disUuice of my destination. Here again
troubles commenced ; the water shallowed and the di-eaded ' roley-
poleys ' were as thick as ever. My naturahst's spu-it, however,
triumphed, and I made my way to the nearest tree, which contained
three nests, from each of which a Spoonbill flew as I approached.
Eager to secure my prize, I commenced cUmbing the tree ; but numbers
of the large ' bull-dog ' ant had taken refuge in the branches, and of
their presence I was soon painfully aware by numerous stings ; but the
Spoonbills' eggs I was determined to have in spite of the ants, and wtli
an occasionally muttered imprecation at each additional sting, I at last
had the satisfaction of beholding my first Spoonbills' eggs, which were
rather long and pointed, the colour white. Each nest contained foiu'
eggs, and from where I stood I could see several other nests, none of
wluch contained more than four eggs. The Herons I noticed were
also breeding, their nests containing the same number of eggs.

" Having any quantity to choose from, I contented myself witl:
some half-dozen of the best looking eggs of botli Heron and Spoonbill,
taken from various nests. Whilst taking these nests I discovered the
nest of a Whistling Eagle in a tree a short distance away, and on which
the female bird was sitting, doubtless with the idea of reaping a rich
harvest for herself and young in the not far distant future. In this,
so far as her present embryo family were concerned, she was mistaken,
for I soon had her fine pair of eggs transferred to my bag, and as there
was nothing else to be obtained just then, I continvied my exploration
by visiting other parts of the lake, which resulted in my discovering
several other species of nests and eggs, amongst which were two nests
of the Nankeen Heron ( Nycticurax caledonirux), each containing four
eggs, about the same size and colour as those of the Ardea pacified,
but of a paler tint. The nests were similar in construction and position
to those of A. parifica. By this time my bag was prettj' well full, so
I made my way shorewards, and returned home well pleased with the
result of my day's labours, though smarting cheadfully from the com-
bined effects of the ' roley-poley ' thorns and the stinging of the ants,
to say nothing of sun-burnt shoulders."

950

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ORDER-HERODIONES: HERONS.

FAMILY— ARDEID^E : HERONS PROPER.

703. — Ardea sumatrana, Raffles. — (546)
GREAT-BILLED HERON.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, foL, vol. vi., pi. 54.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 68.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — "Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. ii., p. . |5 (1S65) ; Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
(1889). •

Geographical Distribution. — Northern Territory, Queensland, and
New South Wales; also throughout the Austro-Malayan Archipelago
up to Further India.

Nest. — Formed of an outer layer of very strong sticks, with a few
small twigs as a lining (Gould — Gilbert).

Effr/.'i. — Clutch, four probably ; elongated ellipse in shape ;
textiu'e of shell coarse ; surface faint trace of gloss ; colour, hght bluish-
green. Dimensions in inches : 2'66 x r6.

Observations. — Gilbert, on the 5th February, 1843, in Port Darwin
district, found a nest containing two eggs of the Great-billed Heron,
built in a large and lofty mclaleuca. Further, according to Gould,
Gilbert states that tliis bii'd is solitary in habits, and only to be
found in the most secluded creeks in the open spaces among the man-
groves. Although chiefly a northern species, it has, as shown in
Dr. Ramsay's Tabular List, been found down the eastern coast as far
as New South Wales. The Great-billed Heron has also an
Austro- Malayan habitat. An egg received thi-ough the late Dr. Kutter,
in my collection, was taken in the Moluccas, 1S7S.

704. — Ardea cineuea, Linnaeus. — (545)
GREY OR COMMON HERON.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 55.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. .\xvi., p. 74.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Hume : Nests and Eggs of Indian
Birds (1S75), also (Oates' ed.) vol. iii., p. 233 (1890) ; I.egge :
Birds of Ceylon, p. 1130 (1880); Campbell: Southern Science
Record (1883).

GKHjraphicaJ Di^trihiition. — New South Wales and South Australia;

also New Zealand, Austro-Malayan Archipelago, Asia, Africa and

Europe.

*No dimensions given.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. gj i

N(;st. — Large, flat (the eentrc being slightly concave); roughly con-
structed of sticks, hned with dry grass, wool, &c. Situated in a tall
tree, upon a cliff by the sea coast, or occasionallj' on the groimd
(Butler).

E<jys. — Clutch, three to six, usually four ; elliptical in form ; tcxtiu'e
of shell coarse ; surface sUghtly glossy ; colour, light bluish-grecu, mottled
over with lime deposits. Dimensions in inches of a set from Europe :
(1) 2-39 X 1-7, (2) 2-17 x 1-61, (3) 2-12 x 1-6.

Ohservatioiu. — The Common Heron evidently enjoys almost a world-
wide range. Gould, during his journey into the interior of South Aus-
traha, 1839, saw a fine adult example of this bird, but althougli he
resoi-ted to every possible stratagem in his power to get witliiu shot of
it, he was unsuccessful. However, he afterwards received a skin of
this species direct from New South Wales.

Amongst other localities the Grey Heron is known to breed in
India, where it usually lays in small colonies in trees, amongst other
kinds of Herons, Egrets, Ibises, &c.

705. — Mesophy.x plumifera, Gould. — (550)
PLUMED EGRET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 57.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. S;.

Geographical Didrihutwn. — Australia in general; also New Guinea
and Moluccas.

Neat and Erjys. — Undesciibed.

Observations. — We all agree with Gould when he says no one of the
members of the beautiful genus of White Herons is more interesting
than this species, inasmuch as it is not only adorned with the redun-
dance of graceful plumes springing from the back like the other species,
but it has a mass of ornamental feathers of precisely the same structure
hanging from the lower part of the neck and chest. Are not these
adornments only donned during the breeding season?

Tlie Plumed Egret has been observed in nearly every State, either
about the mud flats of bays or estuaries or in swamps and lagoons in
the interior, but no Australian breeding grounds have yet been dis-
covered, or at least invaded by the collector. True to their
tribe, they possibly breed in heronries or colonies, sometimes in company
with other species of Herons, Ibises, &c.

The food of all Egrets consist of fish, frogs, aquatic insects, &c.
A fine specimen of the Plumed Heron, prociued at Western Port by
one of our field naturalists, had no less than three dozen small fish
in its stomach.

1., vol

. vi

., pi. 56,

xxvi.,

P-

98.

Ibis, p.

ii., p. 128

North :

313(1871

! (1888) ;

Austn.

); BuUer
Campbell
Mus. Cat,

Q32 NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

706. — Heuodias timoriensis, Lesson. — (549)
7/. a//i(i (life. Liuiiseus), Gould.

EGRET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Austr.ilia, fol
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mas., vol.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Potts

Birds of New Zealand (1873), vol.

Southern Science Record {1883)

app. (1890).

Geographical Distrilriitlo/i. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania; also
New Zealand, and through the Au,stro-Mala.yan Archipelago up to North
China and Japan.

Nest. — Finnly and coai-sely built of sticks, well interlaced, and form-
ing a strong platfonn. There is no lining except the smaller twigs that
finish off the ,top. Diameter, about 17 inches. Usual position in a
heronry or colony in trees, overhanging a river. Sometimes, however,
the nest is solitary.

Eyys. — Clutch, three to foiu" ; elliptically inclined in shape ; textui'c
of shell coarse; sm-face shghtly glossy; colour, light bluish-gi-een.
Dimensions in inch&s of a clutch: (1) 2-22 x 1-5, (2) 2-2 x 1-55, (3)
2-2 X 1-52, (4) 2-2 x 1-52. (Plate 26.)

Ubservatioiis. — The Large Egret is a noble species in matchless white
plumage. Graceful phunes spring from the back and overlap the tail,
while the bill and eyes are yellowish, and the legs look oddly black.
The ornamental plumes are only worn during the breeding season. In
size the bird is long and graceful, and about 30 inches in length. Gould
called it the Australian Egret, and it is now accepted as not being
identical with the great White Heron of Europe and elsewhere. The
Australian variety ranges up to Japan. The bird, although not
numerous, has been noted for all the States, including Tasmania and
New Zealand, where it is met with along the livers and lagoons
of the inteiior, as well as in the neighbourhood of the coast.
Tlio birds fly gi-acefuUy with measiu-ed flight and slow, and it is a
beautiful sight to witness a small flock of them in tlie dazzling sunshine
aiTange themselves into the form of a pyramid on the crown of some
dead tree near the river. However, these are sights one sees when
one's gun is left in camp. But when you have that murderous weapon
the beautiful birds are extremely shy and difficult to approach within
range. I remember once obtaining a beautiful skin without expending
ammunition. I was in the sciiib on the Fitzroy River, Queensland,
when I heard a distant shot far down the river, and in the course of
time was astonished to see a lai'ge snow-white bird, like a meteor from
the sky, fall upon the gi-ound near mo dead. It was in full nuptial
plumage, adorned with plumes, and no doubt ex])ired when holding 011
its.coiu'se as long as it could after receiving the gun shot, the report of
which I had heard down the stream.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. ^53

From the late Mr. T. H. Potts's beautiful description of the White
Herou in New Zealand I quote the following ; — " Little if anything was
known about its breeding habits. In ajiswer to enquiries, we foimd it
was generally said to breed in swamps. At last, in Decembei-, 1871,
from a sui'e somxej we he;u'd of a breeding place on the West Coast.
It was called a cranery. It was distant certainly, being on the other
side of the island, let lis say, between two and three himch'ed miles
from home. The writer and one of his sons, liaving ridden across the
island, and thence southerly to the junction of the Waitaugi with the
Waitoroa rivers, found the breeding station to be situated about three
miles inland fi'om the sea, on a stream called the Waitangi-tuna (wailing
river of eels). We reached the secluded home of the Kotuku (as the
Maoris call the bird) by boat, passing through forest scenery of wondrous
beauty. As the dense bush closed in, the swift flowing river on either
side, an open glade was formed where each stretch of water disclosed to
our delighted gaze fresh x-istas of surpassing loveliness — drooping mosses,
pendant fionds of pellucid ferns, waving like fairy banners; epiphytes,
broad Ucliens, and flowering climbei-s lent their aid to dress each tree
in endless shades of colour. The rimu and rata showed, in their well-
contrasted foliage, like rival forest queens, each worthy of a prize for
beauty. Oiu' raptiu'e with the wald gi-aces of the forest tarried briefly, for
rounding a little point, at once we lost all thought or care of what had
just caused us such vast dehght, in taking in the novel scene before us.
On the still au", suddenly sounded, came a rashing noise of wings, now
high above, and around us flew scores of small black Shags, and many
a noble-looking Heron, in high alarm, crossing the stream ,or following
its windings, soaring over the tops of the trees, or ghdiug past the deep
shadows of the woods. Our first siuprise over, we could note the
movements of the birds we had so much dismayed. In company with
many scores of sombre-pliunaged Shags, we could see from forty to
fifty wliite-robed Herons, displaying each trick of attitude and move-
ment, graceful or grotesque, as they brooded over or shuffled awkwardly
from off their nests, prepared for flight, took wing, glided aloft, settled
on tree tops, or prepared to alight. Wo foimd the small black Shags in
close association with the Herons. The structiu'es of the latter, in most
cases clustered round with the smaller basin-shaped nests of the Shags,
were built in a. variety of trees that stood close to, in cases partly over-
hanging the stream, at heights varying from eight to forty feet above the
groimd. Ai'ound several ti'ees were twisted the rough rope-hke stems
of the aspiring Rttbiii «(^v^r«/^s, and in one instance a Heron's nest
occupied the top of a tree fern, with the bird crouched over her charge,
the white phmiage showing through the spreading fronds ; this was
voted the gem amongst the abodes of the heroniy. The eggs were
three quite as often as foui' to each nest. On close examination we
found the eggs differed but little in size; in shape they did present a
slight variation in contour, from oval to rather long ovoid fonn ; colour,
pale-green, that evidently faded slightly dming the period of incubation.
W^hilst flying around and high above us, doubtless disgusted at om'
intrusion, a few birds now and then gave utterance to a hoarse call or
en- of ' kornk, kornk,' rejjeated at slow intervals.

954

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

" From a pretty cai'eful scrutiny, wo judged that the most interestmg
heronry comprised some five-and-twenty nests; whilst those of the Shags,
closely iutei-mingled, were at least five or six times as numerous. We
carried away most carefully the tree fern top and nest, together with
several eggs; made no attempt to capture or kill a bird, being thus
mindful to excite as little alarm as possible, and had the pleasm-e of
seeing many of them retumiug to their nests. In the heromy the nests
must be repaired year after year, as the same spot has been an old-
established breeding station ; those birds which breed earliest appear
to select nm-series at the greatest height from the groimd, as it was
proved that the freshest eggs were in the lowest structures. The Heron
commences laying about the third week in November, it incubates about
fom- weeks ; when the young appear, so strongly is the parental instinct
developed in the old bird, that it assiunes a courage foreign to its natiu'e
at all other seasons, as it has been known to sufier itself to be taken on
the nest rather thaa desert its helpless offspring. It may be observed
that the young birds remain on the nest for a considerable period, thereby
the labom- of the old birds in biinging home a sufficient food supply is
much less than it would be if their young scrambled from the nest earlier
and took up several scattered stations."

Some time subsequently Mr. Potts sent me a pair of the Heron's
eggs, which he gathered on that now historic trip, and with no small
amount of satisfaction did I place them in my cabinet.

Mr. H. R. Elvery, on the 8th November, 1899, found a small
colony of White Egrets breeding in the Richmond River district of New
South Wales. The nests wei-e picturesquely situated in the topmost
branches of trees which were enveloped with masses of vines, on an
island in a swamp. Cormorants and Nankeen (Night) Herons were
likewise nesting near.

707. — NoTOPHoyx nov^ hollandi.*!, Latham. — (548)

WHITE-FRONTED HERON.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 53.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 109.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould: Birds of Australia (1S4S),
also Handbook, vol. li., p. .299 (1S65); Kamsay : I'roc. Zool.
See, p. 341 (1S77) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 31S (18S9).

GeiKjraiiliical Distrihution. — Whole of Australia and Tastnauia; also
New Zealand, Loyalty Islands and New Caledonia; through New
Guinea (probably) to the Moluccas and the Celebes.

Nest. — A platform, about 15 inches in diameter and 3i inches in
height, composed of coarse sticks, with smaller sticks or twigs Iniilt into
the centre, and placed in branches of an overhanging tree, usually near
water. The nest is much bespattered with lime and frequently re-used.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 955

f''.)'.!"- — Clutch, four to five ; elliptical iu shape ; texture of shell
somewhat coai-se ; suiface slightly glossy ; colour, pale bluish-green, when
fresh the shade is exquisite for beauty. Dimensions in inches of a
proper clutch: (1) 2-03 x 1-35, (2) 2-0 x l-3u, (3) 1-96 x 1-37,
(•4) 1-92 X 1-38, (5) 1-89 x 1-36. (Plate 26.)

Observations. — No bird of its kind is probably more common than
the White-fronted HeroUj or so-called Blue Crane of the colonists. It
is common to the whole of Australia and Tasmania, and wherever is
a sheet of water, a river, or the mud flat of an estuaiy there will surely
be found the attendant Blue Crane. The White-fronted Heron takes
its .vernacular name from its conspicuous white face and throat, while
all the rest of the plumage is bluisli-gi'ey or slate-coloured, wearing a
brownish tinge on the under parts. The bill is leaden colour, with eyes
to .match, and the legs ai'e of a yellow hue. The bird is smaller than
the Pacific Heron, being about 24 inches long. Its flight is heavy and
irregulai', and when on the wing or distiu'bed it utters a loud hoarse
note. When in search of food it wades knee deep into the water in
quest of marine insects, crabs, fish, &c., and when on land will jiot despise
small reptiles.

These birds do not build in, a hero my like some of the other species,
nor are the soUtaiy nests always placed near water. Once I found a
nest with young in a box (Eucalyptus) tree, on the plains near Pyramid
Hill, Victoria, some distance from the nearest swamp. The youngster
was a comical looking creature, clothed in greyish down, and when
distm-bed tluiist its long snake-like head and neck into the air and waved
it to and fro.

When on the Loddon, in 1884, I observed a Heron sitting on her
nest in a tree which also contained a Goshawk's, nest.

In Tasmania, five clutches of five eggs each were taken from the
same Heron's nest, and, notwithstanding, the bird succeeded in rearing
a brood before the season expired ; therefore the species woidd appear
to be a persistent layer.

Usual, breeding montLs from September to December or January.

708. — NoToPHuYx PACiriCA, Latham. — (547)
WHITE-NECKED (PACIFIC) HERON.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 52.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. in.
Previous Description of Eggs. — Bennett: Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.
Wales, vol. vii., p. 324 (1882); Campbell: Southern Science
Record (18S3) ; North : Austn. .\lus. Cat., p. 317, pi. 18, fig. 2,
(1889).

Geographical Distribution. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania.

956

NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Xest. — A loosely constinicted platform of sticks, situated in a tree
Qverhauging a streanij or standing in a lagoon. The birds usually breed
in small companies or in a heronry, consisting of about twenty-five or
thirty nests. But occasionally the nests are solitary.

Eygx. — Clutch, four, sometimes five ; vary in shape from roundish
to elliptical ; texture of shell coarse ; siu'face has faint trace of gloss,
and pitted; colour, light bluish-green, occasionally soiled with bird
lime. Dimensions in inches of a set of round ovals: (1) 2-17 x I'oG,
(2) 2-08 X 1-58, (3) 2-06 x 1-6; of an olliptic<il pair: (1) 2-23 x 1-49,
(2) 2-22 X 1-5.

Observutiuns. — This handsome bird is found generally throughout
Australia and Tasmania, being partial to quiet swamps, where it is
sometimes observed in company with other wading birds, amongst
which it. is easily recognised by its dark-coloiued body contrasted with
white head, neck, and beautiful elongated breast feathers. The upper
part of the bill is black, the under portion of it yellow, while the feet are
black and the eyes dark-brown. Altogether it is a goodly-sized bird,
being about 30 inches in total length, and a stiiking object in a land-
scape when posed in a- picturesque lagoon. The Pacific Heron feeds
on frogs, newts, and aquatic insects, and its actions in walking about
lagoons in search i^of such prey are full of grace and elegance. When
distiu-bed it vitters a, hoarse, ventral note, and mounts up to the dead
limb of an adjacent tree. The last occasion I saw these fine Herons
at home was in a small swamp near the CanipasiJe River, where I
observed a pair for some time feeding in company with a pair of White-
fronted Herons, and a solitai'y Straw-necked Ibis, which, bustling about
in a hungry manner, was a contrast to the stately movements of the
Herons.

For the beautiful eggs that grace my cabinet I am indebted to
Mr. E. H. Lane (of Wambangalang, New South Wales), who took them
from a heronry near Dubbo. Concerning them he writes : " I took the
nests on upper side of Derribong Run, on the East Began, about ten
miles above Dandaloo, in the mouth of September, 1880, dming the
last few days of the month. The nests were on rather stunted white
box-trees, within the edge of a small lagoon or swamp, and I had to
ride in with my nephew up to the saddle-flaps in water and hold his
horse while he chmbed for the eggs. Some of the trees had from
three to five nests in them, and altogether we visited from twenty to
thirty nests, some of which had young ones, others eggs far gone with
yoiuig, and in various stages to fresh. The number of eggs to each
nest was usually four, in an odd one three. In one of the trees where
tliere were three or four Herons' nests, was also that of a Yellow-
billed Spoonbill, with one freshly-Laid egg, which I was obliged to take,
as I was starting for Wambangalang station the following morning."

A sohtary nest containing a pair of eggs just " chipped " was
observed at Coomooboolaroo (Queensland), about the middle of March,
1887. This fine Heron has been observed by Mr. K H. Bennett
breeding in company with the Yellow-legged Spoonbill (Flataha

NESTS AA'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BINDS. 557

flavipes), on trees in swamps in the Laehlan district (New South
Wales), 1879. Tlic nests of the Herons were composed of sticks laid
crossways over some horizontal fork or flat portion of a thick bough,
and were of a scanty nature, through which the eggs could be seen
from underneath.

Mr. S. W. Jackson informs me he found the White-necked Hei-on
for the fii-st time (1898) breeding in his district (South Grafton). Even
the aborigines state that they (the Herons) never built there before.

Two nests found on September 7th were in separate trees (Eucalypt),
at an altitude of 100 feet, and hard to get at, but with the aid of
liis brother Frank, Mr. Jackson obtained a set of fresh eggs from each.
Several other nests were found in another locality.

Breeding months, September to March.

709. — NoTOPHOYX FLAViROSTRis, Sharpc. — (5.54)
Herodint: pirnta, Gould.

PIED EGEET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 62.
Reference. — Cat. Bird? Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 112.

Geographical Dktrihufion.- — -North-west Australia, Northern Tei-ri-
torj' and North Queensland.

Nest and Eggs. — Undescribed.

Ohservntions. — Gould's original examples of this beautiful Egret were
prociu-ed by Gilbert and Commander Incc, in the Port Darwin district.
The former states that the bird mhabits inland swamps, and is visually
encountered in small famiHes, often in company with other species, but
is not so abundant in the vicinity of the harboiu- (Port Essington) as
on the islands at the head of Van Diemen's Gulf, where it appeared
numerous. Nothing is known of its nidification.

As Gould's original name, Arden ( Hemdias) picafa, appears to have
been preoccupied by Raffles, the species required a new name. Dr.
Sharpe has proposed Notophoyx flavirosfris.

710. — NoTopHoYx AEUEN8IS, Gray.
ARU EGRET.

Figure. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., pi. ib.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 113.

Geographical Distribution — Northeni Tenntoiy, also Aiii Islands.

Xest and Eggx. — Undescribed.

958

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Ohxervations. — Dr. Sharpe considers this other variety of Pied Egret
a good species. He states : " Tliis is the species evidently referred to
by Gould in his ' Handbook ' as the young of N . picata, when he says :
' The young birds differ in having the whole of the under siu^ace white.'
Neither of the specimens in the Musciun (British) appear to be immature,
as they have full crests of white plumes, and fiuiiher, we know that the
young of N. 2)icata is different."

711. — Garzetta nigripes, Temminck. — (551)
Herodias melaiiopiif:, Wagler.

LESSEE EGRET.

I'igure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 58.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 122.

Gt'ographical Disfri-hiifion. — Australia in general ; also New Guinea,
Moluccas and Java.

Ne.^f. — A platfoi-m of sticks (about 12 inches in diameter) in a eu-
calypt or other tree at the edge of a swamp or lagoon. Usually
in colonics.

Egffs. — Clutch, three to four; short ellipse in shape; texture of shell
somewhat coarse ; surface slightly glossy and minutely pitted ; coloui",
light or pale bluish-green. Dimensions of a set taken near the Nichol-
son Eiver, North Queensland. 25th April, 1898: (1) 1-89 x 1-34, (2)
1-8 X 1-57, (3) 1-75 X 1-29. (Mr. S. W. Jackson's collection.)

Ohservations. — The Lesser or Spotless Egret is the smallest of the
Australian White " Cranes." According to Gould, both sexes are
adorned with long, flowing plumes dimng breeding season ; but the birds
may be distinguished from the other Egrets by their dark-coloured bills.

There appears to be genuine doubt whether or not the Little Egret
(G. garzetta ) is really an Australian bird. Gould's identification was
from a lithogi'apli of a bird killed in the neighbourhood of Brisbane.
The bird was probably the Lesser Egret.

NESTS AND EGGS Ol- AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 959

712. — Demieghetta sacra, Gmulin. — (553, 555, and 556)
Herodias atha (nee Sykes), Gould.
D. jufjularis, Foi-sler.
D. greyi. Gray.

REEF HERON.

/V^«re.— Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi.,pls. 59 to 61.

Rtfereme. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 137.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs.—Go\i\d : Birds of Australia (184S) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii. p. 308 (1865) ; Potts : Trans. New
Zealand Inst., vol. iii., p. 97 (1871) ; Hume : Nests and Eggs
Indian Birds (1S75), also (Gates' ed.) vol. iii., p. 246 (iSgo) ;
BuUer : Birds of New Zealand, vol. ii., p. 133 (18S8) ; North :
Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales, 2nd ser. vol. ii., p. 445 ; also Austn.
Mus. Cat., pi. 18, fig. 5, (1889) ; Le Souef ; Ibis, p. 422 (1895).

Geographical Distribution.- — Coasts of Australia and Tasmania;
also Now Zealand and other .islands of the Pacific up to Corea Bay ;
coasts of Further India and Austro-Malayan Archipelago.

Nesf. — Somewhat shallow, and about 15 inches in diameter, con-
structed of coarse, herbage, lined inside with finer mateinal, and usually
placed on a ledge or under shelving rock or in a tree at various heights.

Eg<j^. — Clutch, two to three, occasionally four ; elliptical in shape,
textiu^e somewhat coarse ; surface withovit gloss ; colour, bluish- white ;
when held up to hght the inside lining of the .shell is a beautiful light-
gi'een. Dmiensions in inches of a full clvitch : (1) 1 '86 x 1-34,
(2) 1-85 X 1-35, (3) 1-77 x 1-35, (4)1-77 x 1-32. (Plate 26.)

Observation!'. — The Reef Heron is found along our shore line, and
on outlying reefs and islands elsewhere. It is supposed to be a tropical
or sub-tropical species, but about twenty years ago I observed Reef
Herons, both the slate-coloured bird and the pure white variety, as
near Melbourne as Phillip Island. A few years after, Mr. E. D.
Atkinson, of Tasmania, reported having fovmd birds breeding for
successive seasons on small islands oflt the north-west coast of that State.

The Blue Reef Heron has slaty-black plumage, reUeved with stripe of
white or buff down the chin. At fii'st sight the bird resembles the
familiar White-fronted Heron, biit being about 23 inches in length it is
shorter, shai-per in appearance, and not so stately as the White-fronted
Heron. The ^Vhite Reef Heron, with the exception of a greenish-
coloiu-ed bill and legs, is perfectly white ; otherwise in shape and size
it is the duplicate of the dark-coloured bird. This difference of colour
has sorely pvizzled naturalists. Some authorities treat them merely as
varieties, others as different species. Gould, oui" great Australian
observer, separated the birds. Mr. Atkinson and I observed the
association of both varieties in Bass Strait ; but it is a strong point for
Gould that only the dark variety is foimd in New Zealand. Why do
not the two coloured birds develop there as in Australia and the Austro-

960

NESTS AA'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Malayan region? However, it is now generally admitted by modem
ornithologists that certain species of Herons have two phases of plumage
— one blue, the other white — though probably there is yet a good deal
more to be learnt before the right explanation of observed facts is given.
Moreover, parti-coloured birds have also been observed.

Professor Moseley (" Notes by a Natui-alist on the ' Challenger ' ")
states: "A small Heron ( Demier/retta aacrd ) wades about on the coral
reefs at Tonga, and catclies small fish, and is also to be seen frequently
inland all over the island. This bird changes its plumage from pure
white to uniform grey, and all stages of parti-coloured plumage were to
be seen during oui- visit. Contraiy to the usual rule, the bird is white
when young, and dark in the matm-e state. ; Hence the ancestors must
have been white, and the race is assuming a. darker phunage for
protection."

Prompted by my article on Reef Herons, which appeai-ed in " The
Australasian," 24th February, 1894, Mr. F. Arthur Jackson, of, Jackson
Dale, Fiji, sent the following valuable testimony respecting the transition
stage of plumage of these bu'ds. He wrote : " Dui-ing a residence of
twenty-six years in Fiji I have had many opportunities of observing both
the blue or slate-colourod Heron ( Demiegretta sacra ) .a.nA the piUT white
vai-iety, and until this year I was under the belief that they were distinct
species. A constant puzzle wa.s that I more frequently obsei-\'cd pairs
consisting of a blue bird and a white bird together, than pairs of blue
or pairs of white. The natives of Fiji have only one name for the blue
Heron and the white Heron, viz., ' Belo.' If asked to distinguish
them they call the white ' Belo Vuso,' and the blue ' Belo Loa,' mean-
ing white ' Belo ' or Heron, and black or dark ' Belo ' or Heron. They
believe that both varieties are white when young, and change to blue
or slate-coloured after tliey have reached maturity. The Fijian natives
have a name for the bird when in process of changing, its phunage from
white to blue or slate-coloiu'ed. They then call it ' belo sa rewa.' This
year, for the; first time during my long residence in Fiji, I have seen
three different birds at the ' belo sa rewa ' stage — i.e., in that stage when
they change phunage from piu'c white to blue or slate-coloured. The
first' I saw let me get within twenty paces (they are veiy tame in the
outlying districts and islands of Fiji) before rising ; and, to my gi-eat
surprise, I noticed a white Heron with blue stripes or bars across the
body and wings. Before I saw this bird I had disbelieved the natives'
story touching the ' belo sa rewa.' I afterwards got close to another
marked like the first, and a fortnight ago I saw one nearly all blue or
slate-coloiu:ed, with only a patch of white on the back, and part of the
tail feathers wei-e blue and part white. My reason for troubling you
with this note is a statement, made by a correspondent of the gi'eat
Australian observer, Gould, which you quote in your paper, ' Some
Australian Birds,' in ' The Australasian ' of 24th Fcbiiiary, 1894.
Gould's correspondent (quoted by you) says : ' From the circumstance
of my always having found this (the white bird) and the dark-coloiu-ed
species in company, I considered them as the same bird in different
stages of plumage, their size and proportion being so similar, and was
surprised that individuals exhibiting a change from blue to white, or

NESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. q6i

vice-versa, never occurred.' The natives of Fiji say this change (from
wliite to blue only) does occui-, and my having absolutely seen three
birds in different stages of change from white to blue or slate-colow
goes far to disprove the statement of Gould's correspondent, viz., ' that
individuals exhibiting a change from blue to white or vice-versa never
occurred.' "

Students who may wish to follow this difficult, and the same time
interesting, subject of colouration furtherj will find some useful hints
in Colonel Legge's " Birds of Ceylon" (p. 1136), and in Messrs. Baird,
Brewer and Ridgway's "North American 'Water Birds," vol. i., pp. 43
and seq.

The Sombre Egret mentioned bv Gould-' would appear to be merely
another variety of the Reef Heron.

With regard to the blue variety, which Mr. E. D. Atkinson observed
breeding on a small island off the north-west part of Tasmania, where
he first took eggs in November, 1883, writing to me October, 1885,
Mr. Atkinson states : " Whilst walking among the rocks I flushed a Reef
Heron and found a nest with foiu' young birds ; looking about I got
a second nest with two yoimg ones. This is very .disappointing, as the
eggs I took previously were taken fairly fresh about the middle of
November, and here I get young birds in two instances on the 27th
October. Both nests were under shelves of slanting rock.

" The nest, as I think I mentioned, taken on the west coast was
among tussocks ; the one seen yesterday, witli young birds, was a very
neat one, made of dead stalks about as thick as a pipe stem, and care-
fully hidden imder a shelf of rock. But I could find no nest with the
foiu' young birds wliich were older than the two, and should have thought
they might have wandered from it, but the chipped egg shells proved
they had not. The eggs must have been laid where I found the birds —
on the ground luider the leaning rock, and so protected from view that
I should never have seen them had not the bird flo\\'n out close to my
feet. There was probablv a third nest, as five birds were hovering
round me at this spot. "

Once, on the 2oth September, Mr. Tom Carter fovmd a nest with
a single egg of the \^Tiite Reef Heron on Eraser Island, North-west
Australia. On another occasion he observed two young birds in a
nest, nearly fledged, and. like their parents, perfectly white. Mr. Carter
also sends the following cimous note : " On the wi'eck of the steamer
' Perth.' on the reef here, is a nest, made originally bv a pair of Reef
Herons. It being too far to carry sticks, tlie birds made the nest
entirely of broken pieces of fencing-wire, picked up from the wrecked
cargo. Tliis year a pair of Black Connorants has laid in the nest."

In Bass Strait Reef Herons commence to lay in September. In
the tropics, probablv, the season is different or may be variable. On
Hope Islands, off the North Queensland coast, Mr. D. Le Souef observed
fullv-fledged young in November ; while in the same locality Mr. R.
Hislop took several clutches of fresh eggs in April.

' Handbook, vol. ii., p. 305.
61

g62 A'ESTS AND EGGS OF ArSTRALlAN BIRDS.

713. — Nycticorax caledonkus, Gmclin. — (557)
NIGHT HERON.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, £ol., vol. vi., pi. 63.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 158.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould: Birds of Australia (184S),

also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 312 {1865) ; Ramsay : I'roc. Linn.

Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. vii., p. 55 (1885); North; Austn. Mus.

Cat., p. 320, pi. 18, fig. 1 {1889).

Geographical Distribution. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania;
also New Zealand (occasional), New Guinea (including Admii-alty
Islands), Celebes, and north to Pelew Islands.

Nest. — A loosely constructed platfonn of sticks, placed in a heronry,
in trees standing in water ; but frequently a solitary nest may be f oimd
in a tree usually overhanging a stream.

Eggs. — Clutch, f ovu- ; elliptical in shape; textvu'e of shell somewhat
coarse ; surface slightly glossj' ; colour, Ught bluish green. Dimensions
in inches of typical eggs: (1) 2-03 x 1-4, (2) 2-0 x 1-39; of a pair of
roxmder-sized examples ; (1) 1-94 x 1-5, (2) 1-92 x 1-53. (Plate 26.)

Observations. — The Night Heron is foimd tlu-oughout Australia and
Tasmania, with the extremes of its range from New Zealand in the
south to the Pelew Islands in the north, and a.s its name implies, is
strictly nocturnal in its habits, resting asleep, or half asleep, in tall trees
diuing the day. At night, for food, it perambulates the swamps and
creeks in favoured localities, where its hoarse croaking may be often
heard.

When young, the plumage is buff or dark-brown, and is remai-kable
for its blotched or spotted appearance ; but when mature, both sexes are
dressed in a handsome coat of cinnamon-brown, with the luidcr surface
wliite, the crown of the head being black, from which grow two' narrow,
white, occipital pliunes. Orange-coloured eyes, somewhat short dark
bill, and light-yellow legs complete the bird's general description. Its
total length is about 20 inches.

I never succeeded in discovering the nest of the Nankeen or Night
Heron. The specimens of eggs I liave described were received from
the collection of the late Mr. George Barnard, and were taken from a
heronry on the well-known Gracemcre Estate, near Rockliamptoii,
Quoenisland.

On Campbell Island, River Murray, there used to be a licroniy
where the Nankeen Herons have been observed breeding in numbers
in company with the ,Pacific Herons and Egi-ets, during September and
October, in flood time.

Overhanging a creekj about seven miles from Melbourne, it is stated
that a solitary nest and eggs of this nocturnal species were taken not
many seasons ago. In by-gone days (he trees in (he Botanical

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 363

Domain were favourite roosting places for great numbers of these birds,
which were usually observed in immatiu-o pliunago.

Breeding months, September to December, and later in the Tropics.
In North Queensland, eggs have been taken in April, even as late as
June. These birds are also stated to breed in the mangroves in the
Fitzroy River district (North-west).

714. — BuTORiDES sTAGNATiLis, Gould. — (560 and 561)
B. macrorhynclui, Goiild.

LITTLE MANGROVE BITTERN.

Figttre. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pis. 66 and 67.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 183.

Previcii- Darriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of .-Vustralia (184S) ,

also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 318 (1865) ; Ramsay : Proc. Linn.

Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. vii., p. 56 (18S2) ; North : Proc. Linn.

Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. ii., 2nd ser., p. 445 (1S87) ; North :

.\ustn. Mus. Cat., p. 322, pi. 18, fig. 6 {18S9).

Geographical Disfrifmfion. — West and North-west Australia, Nor-
thern TerritoiT, Queensland, and New South Wales; New Guinea and
Molucca Islands, Timor and Flores, Solomon Islands, New Caledonia,
New Hebrides and Fiji, Friendly and Society Islands.

Nest. — Similar, but smaller in size to that of the Yellow-necked
Bittern, being a platform of small sticks, placed on forked horizontal
branches |0f a bushy tree or mangrove, over water. Diameter, 12 to
14 inches.

^f/</'^- — Clutch, two to three ; elliptical in shape ; texture somewhat
coarse ; siu^ace slightly glo.ssy ; colotu', light bluish-green. Dimensions
in inches of a proper clutch : (1) 1-68 x 1-22, (2) 1-64 x 1-22, (3) 1-6 x 1-24.

Ohservatioiis. — It will be observed that this interesting. little Bittern
enjoys a goodh' range, its favourite haunts being small islets covered with
mangroves and low swampj' points of land .running out into the sea.

It appeai-s to be now accepted by the latest authorities that the
Thick-biUed and the Little Mangrove Bitterns are identical. On this
point Dr. Shaj'pe (who examined and described the 120 species of
Herodinne^ in the British Museum) states : " I have not been able to
discover any evidence of the existence of two species in Australia, so far
as my experience of the series in the British Musuni enables me to
judge; and I believe that Gould's B. macrnrJii/nrlia is the same species
ashis.B. stagnafili-i, being foimded upon young or winter-plumaged
specimens. Although in his pictures he has colotu'ed the soft parts
differently, I consider these colours to be due to seasonal changes only."

Gilbert foimd a colony of Little Mangrove Bitterns breeding
on two small islets in Coral Bay, near the entrance of Port Essington.

964

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

He gives a pretty pictvire of their nests — about thirty in number — built
both on the mangi'oves and on tlic branches of a yt'llow-blossomed
liibiscus. They were very frail structures, consisting of a few small
twigs, placed across each other on the horizontal branches, not more than
six feet from the ground, and each containing two yoimg birds or two
eggs.

Gould states he himself observed two individuals sitting close to their
flat nest on the branch of a mangi-ove gi'owing on Garden Island, near
the mouth of the Hunter River, but for some reason or otber he did
not describe the eggs. Dr. Ramsay, in describing the eggs, states that
this Mangrove Bittern used to breed freely at one time in the neigh-
bourhood of Sydney. Mr. John Ramsay, as far back as September,
1860, found several of their nests in the mangroves on the Parraniatta
River.

The eggs I have de cribed are from the colK ction of Mr. S. W. Jackson,
who has enjoyed pleasant nesting experiences with both this and the
Yellow-necked Mangi'ove Bittern in the Clarence River district.

Bi"eeding months in southern localities, September to, probably,
January.

715. — Ardetta sinensis, Ginciin.
LITTLE YELLOW BITTERN.

Rtferoice. — Cat. Birds Brit. .Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 227.

Previous Description of Eogs. — Swinhoe ; Hume-(.)ates : Nests and E^gs
Indian Birds, vol. iii., p. 255 (i8go).

Geographical Dutrihutinn. — Northern Territory and North Queens-
land ; also New Guinea, through the Austro^Malayan Archipelago to
Further India, India, China and Japan; Marianne, Caroline, and Pelew
Islands.

Nest. — In thick reeds or rushes of swamps, two or three feet above
the surface of the water.

^9!l^- — Clutch, four to six ; elliptical in shape ; texture of shell fine ;
surface slightly glossy ; colour, delicate greenish-wliite. Dimensions in
inches (1) 1-32 x -98, (2) 1-28 x -97, (3) 1-2.5 x -96.

Ohxerratioiis.- — It is interesting to have this Oriental little Bittern
among the Australian avi-faima. Mr. J. T. Cockerell procured an adult
specimen in Queensland ; while another example is also reported from
Australia (probably the north). The Little Yellow Bittern is about
1.5 inches in total length, or about lialf tlio length again of the Minute
Bittern.

Nests of the Little Yellow Bittern have been taken in various parts
of India, Pegu, Anioy and Japan. 1

AESTS AXD EGGS Ul- AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. (JO5

716. — Ardetta PusiLLA, Vicillol. — (b62)
MINUTE BITTERN.

l-iguic. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., v(j1. vi,, pi. 68.
Reference.— QsX. Birds Brit. Mas., vol. xxvi., p. 234.
Previous Description of Eggs. — North: Proc. Linn, Soc, N.S. Wales,
2nd scr., vol. X., p. 219 (1895).

Gtixjraijhiail Di^trihutiuii. — Australia in general; al-o New Zeaiaiul.

Sed. — Slight and Hal ; composed of reeds, &c., loosely put to-
gether ; placed sometimes on the gToiind. but usually on a little platform
formed by the reeds or rashes being trodden down within a foot or so
above the water's level. Dimensions, 6 to 7 inches in diameter by 1 to
2 inches thick.

A',/,/.s. — Clutch, four, occasionally five ; elliptical in shape ; texture
of shell comparatively fine ; sui-face ven' shghtly glossy ; coloiu', white.
Dimensions in inches of a pair: (1) 1-26 x 1-0, (2) MS x -98.

Ohser vat inns. — Hie Minute Bittern, although a rare species (ob-
viously on account of its secluded retreats), has been foimd in many
situations conducive to its habits, i.e., swampy reed beds, in Australia.
In the olden days the bird was reported in the swamps near Mordialloc,
Victoria.

Only cue or two sets of their eggs have been taken, therefore wc
know little or nothing of the breeding habits of this little swamp
wader. Mr. A. J. North, in describing the eggs in Mr. Ker-
shaw's collection, remarks : — " Though a comparatively rare species,
the Minute - Bittern is widely distributed in suitable localities
over most parts of Eastern Australia. In New South Wales it
still frequents the neighbourhood of Sydney. Specimens have been
recently presented to the Trustees of the Australian iluseum that were
prociu'ed on the marshy grounds at the mouth of Cook's River during
January, 1895. A freshly-shot specimen was also received in the same
month from a coiTespondent at Narromine, a pastoral and agricultural
chstrict situated on the banks of the Macquarie River, and about three
hundred miles west of Sydney.

" It appears, however, to be more freely distributed on the swamps
in the vicinity of the Murray River, for on several occasions
Mr. Everard has been successful in finding its nest and eggs near
Mathoui-a. Mr. James Kershaw, to whom I am also indebted for the
loan of the eggs of this species for description, has kindly sent me the
following notes relative to the taking of tliem : ' Mr. H. G. Everard
found the nest of the Minute Bittern, containing four fresh eggs, in a
swamp near Mathoura, during November, 1893. It was an open nest,
composed of aquatic plants and grasses and herbage growing about the
swamp, and was fastened to several reeds just above the sur-face of the
water. The bird was seen on the nest, and one was captured alive.' ''

q66 .\i:STS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

717. — DuPETOK GOULDi, Boiiapai'te. — (559)
Buforoichu flavico/lis, Latham.

YELLOW-NECKED MANGROVE BITTERN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of .\ustralia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 65.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 249.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (184S) .
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 315 (1865); Ramsay: Proc. Linn.
Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. ii., p. 55 (1882); North: Austn. Mus.
Cat., pi. iS, fig. 4 (18S9).

Geographical Distribufioii. — Australia ill general (except Victoria);
also New Guinea.

jVe.'it. — A flat structure or platfomi, slightly concave, composed of
small sticks, with a foundation of coarser ones, and placed on a hori-
zontal branch of a low tree — ^usually a mangrove, but sometimes other
tree — over water. Diameter, about 14 inches by about 3i inches thick.

Eyija. — Clutch, four to five ; roundish or elliptical in shape ; texture
of shell somewhat fine ; surface slightly glossy ; colour, white, but
the inside lining has a light greenish tinge. Dimensions in inches
of a proper clutch: (1) 1-78 x 1-37, (2) 1-75 x 1-36, (3) 1-71 x 1-39,
(4) 1-71 xl-3G.

Ohservaiions. — This fine Bittern, a lover of the muddy mangrove
tracts, is found almost wherever these trees grow in Australia. However,
it is not unfrequently found fmlher inland. It has been taken by the
Messrs. Barnard in the Dawson River district, Queensland, and Dr. E.
D'Ombrain obtained a specimen of the bird near Geimautown, between
Albiu-y and Wagga Wagga, New South Wales.

Gould described a pair of eggs " of a very much paler bluish-green
and more rounded form than those of any other species of the group.
I have never seen them other than white in Austraha.

In liis manuscript, Mr. Lau fiuiiishes a record of a nest of the
Yellow-necked Bittern, which lie found on the Clarence River, 1862.
It was in a mangrove tree, at a height of six feet from the ground,
and contained two eggs.

During the last week of December, 1897. when my son Aixhie was
in the Big Scnib of Richmond River district, Mr. Elvery took a set of
eggs from a nest of this Bittern, situated in a horizontal limb of
acacia overhanging a creek. The nest was about twelve feet from the
surface of the water, and was picturesquely situated, by reason of the
acacia being in full bloom.

Like some of the other members of its tribe, this Bittern resorts to
the same nest to lay again if previously robb(>d. Mr. Elvery states he
knew of two nests which were used altcniately by the same pair of
birds : this he proved by robbing one nest, whereupon the birds resorted
to the other.

Breeding season, September to Januaiy.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. yC;

718. — BoTAUUus PcECiLOPTiLUs, Waglcr. — (558)
BITTERN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 64.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 258.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — I'otts : Trans. New Zealand Inst.,

vol. ii., p. 69 (1870); BuUer : Birds of New Zealand (1873);

also vol. ii., p. 143 (1888); Ramsay: Proc. Linn, ijoc, N.S.

Wales, vol. vii., p. 55 (1S82) ; Campbell : Southern Science

Record (188',). also Nests and Eggs Austn. Birds, pi. 2, fig.

558 (1883) ; North ; Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 320, pi. 18, fig. 3

(1889).

Geographical Distributiiin. — Australia in general and Tasmania;
also New Zealand, including Chatham Islands ; New Caledonia.

]S'est.- — A platform (about 12 to 15 inches in diameter) of dead
reeds, built crosswise up to 6 or 7 inches above the water, amongst the
rushes or reeds of a swamp. Sometimes very fine down from the birds,
adheres about the top of the nest. Occasionally a nest is situated in
long grass and solely built of that material.

Egy^. — Clutch, four to five ; oval in shape, or slightly more com-
pressed at one end ; texture of shell coarse ; sui-face glossy and occasion-
ally rough ; colour, light or pale-olive. Dimensions in inches of a proper
clutch: (1) 2-05 X 1-49, (2) 2-0 x 1-47, (3) 2-01 x 1-46 (4) 1-95 x 1-38,
(5) 1-94 x 1-44. (Plate 26.)

Ohxervations. — Almost every permanent reedy swamp or marsh is
tenanted by a pair of Bitterns, and should the swamp be vast there
will be more of these curious nocturnal birds. By night and by day
also you may hear their loud booming notes issuing from tea-tree
swamps in Western Australia, from like places in Eastern parts,
from the marshes of Tasmania or King and Flinders Islands. ine
Bittern wears a beautiful mottled plumage of buff or dark purplish-
brown, with yellow-irised eyes, so suitable for use by night. A greenish
coloured bill and legs complete a fair sized bird about two feet in total
length. Abiding constantly in swamps, the Bittern feeds on fish, frogs,
snails, and insects. Not much is miderstood of the natural economy of
the Bittern, consequently the bird has been viewed with a certain
amoimt of superstition. I am not sure but that its bellowing notes
coming from some dismal swamp have not been taken by natives, both
black and white, for the cry of the bunyip. However, all aborigines
are not superstitious about the bird, for on the Murray, near Ecliuca,
they know it well, and call it the " Bai--mah," and in some parts of
Western Australia it is called the "Biu--den-et.ch." Gould did not succeed
in gathering any information about the nesting habits of this night-bird.
It was not till 1870 that INIr. T. H. Potts described the eggs from New
Zealand. Some years ago, before the Cautfield swamp, near Melbourne,

968

NESTS AND EGGS OF Al'STRALIAN BIRDS.

was reclaimed by an over-energetic Shire Council, which might have
converted it into an ornamental sheet of water, I searched the beds of
tall rushes for Bitterns' nests, but without success, although I frequentlv
flushed the birds. I fancy I was always too early in the season, for
I heard that another field naturalist succeeded in finding a nest one
November. However, my most interesting experience amongst
Bitterns' nests was at the swamps bordeiing the MiuTay River.
With Mr, J. Gabriel and two local farmers I waded into a
beautiful clear lagoon full of lovely aquatic plants, with here
and there patches of tall, flat flags, " cum-bungie," in aboriginal
language, but in botanical lore named Typha. An occasional spread-
ing red gum tree lent picturesqueness to the swamp. Our first
find was a nest, concealed in the flags, containing five eggs. At
another spot we discovered a second nest with three eggs, the bird
evidently not having completed her set, because the eggs were quite
fresh. Tliis swampy adventure took place on the 14th November,
1892. "We secured not only Bitterns' eggs, but those of other rare
waterfowl ; also we had to contend with myriads of persevering leeches.
A tiger snake incident or two at times imparted activity to wading.
The following day, in a swamp, four or five miles further up the river,
this time in bulrushes near a White Ibis rookeiy, we flushed a Bittern,
which winged its way across the swamp in half bewildered fashion.
We were not long in finding the nest, which contained a full set of
five pale-olive eggs.

The illustration of the Bittern's nest was taken during this trip.
It was no easj' undertaldng to get an effective picture when yovi con.sider
the troiible of cari-ying a camera through a swamp, then fixing it in a
thick bed of reeds. Remember, too, you are standing in water and feel
a twinge every time a great leech fastens on your leg. Above water
you fare no better, for flies get into your eyes, while mosquitoes feast
on your sunbximt neck.

Usual breeding season November to January.

z

NESTS .l.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

FAMILY— CICONIID^ : STORKS.

Sub-family — Ciconun,!;.

969

719- — Xenorhynchus asiaticus, Latham. — (544)
BLACK-NECKED STORK (JABIRU).

Tigure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. 51.

Rejerencc. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. .\.,xvi., p. 310.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Hume : Nests and liggs Indian Birds,
vol. iii., p. 607 (1875), (Oates ed.) vol. iii., p. 265 (1S90) ;
White- fryon : Proc. Roy. Soc, Queensland, vol. iii., p. 137
{1886) ; North : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales, 2nd ser., vol.
ii., p. 987 (1S87) ; Campbell : Victorian Naturalist (18S8).

dfoyraphical Uistrihuti<in. — Whole of AustraUa (accidental to Vic-
toria); also New Guinea up to Further India and India.

Xed. — A large and somewhat flat structure, composed of sticks,
lined inside with grass or such like material, and situated in a large
tree usualh' standing in a swamp. Dimensions, about 4 feet across by
3 feet in height.

Eggs. — Clutch, two to four ; round or stout oval in shape ; texture
of shell coarse and granular, especially at the ends, which have the
appearance of having been pitted with the point of a pin ; surface
without gloss. Dimensions in inches of a pair: (1) 2-92 x 213,
(2) 2-91 X 2-16. The eggs are small compared with the size of the bird.

Ubservafions. — Hardly anything can be more picturesque and truly
characteristic of the Tropics than a scene representing the solitary
figure of a Jabiru standing by a serene lagoon sheltered by paper bark
(Melaleuca ) trees, and with the pied plumage of the noble bird upon
long pinkish legs reflected in the water amidst the large blue water
lilies.

Although a scarce and shy bird, the Jabiru has been noted in every
State, except, perhaps. South Australia. However, its occuiTence in
Victoria may be considered accidental. About 1894, Mr. Hugh
Montgomei-y observed birds answering to the description of this
feathered giant in a shallow swamp in front of " The Heart " home-
stead, near the Gippsland Lakes. The Jabiru also enjoys an extra
Australian habitat, which ranges up to Southern Asia.

Probably the first authenticated Jabini's nest discovered in AustraUa
was obsen'ed by Mr. A. S. McGillivray in April. 1877, on the Saxby
River, Queensland. Mr. Macgilhvray was then travelling with cattle
to the Palmer diggings, so merely had to content himself with a peep
at the pair of eggs which the nest contained. He had no means of

„^0 A'ESTS AND liGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

conveniently carrying away such large oological trophies. However,
the hist Australian eggs of the Jabiru described were before the Royal
Society of Queensland, by Messrs. W. T. White and Hy. Tryon, on 6th
August, 1886, from sjiecimens collected in the neighbourhood of
Ingham, on the Herbert River, in March of the previous year.

Mr. White states : " The nest of the Jabii'U bears a gi-eat resem-
blance to the nest of the Eagle in both size and appearance, but it is
always so situated that there is notliing above it. The bird selects a
lofty tree, generally one with the top broken ofi, close to the margin of
a swamp or lagoon, and on the highest point of it builds a pile of sticks
about three feet in depth and foui- in diameter; a thin layer of gi-ass
or i-ushes is placed upon the sticks, and upon this suiface, which is
almost perfectly flat, the eggs (two in number) are laid. I am of
opinion that the Jabiru, hke the Native Companion, does not lay more
than two eggs, and, hke most waders, breeds during the rainy season.
I am unable to say what the period of incubation is, but both sexes
share in the process."

When I exhibited the pair of " the first recorded eggs of Austraha's
only Stork,'' before the Field Natiualists' Club of Victoria, on the 10th
October, 1887, I was at the time unaware that the eggs had been des-
cribed the year previous by Messrs. White and Tryon.

Ihe egg-s I described of the Jabiru were collected by Mr. John L. Ayres
duiing August, 1887, in the Clarence River District. The nest was
situated comparatively low (about twelve feet from the surface of the
water) in tea-tree, iu a swamp about six miles from Grafton. Mr.
Ayres made the discovery while Duck-shooting in a boat. He has
also taken young in long, grey down in the locaUty.

There was apparently a temporary " boom " in Storks' eggs, for
none were collected before, or have been since, that I am aware of.*
About the same time as I exliibited the pair mentioned, Mr. A. J. North
described before the Linncan Society of New South Wales another pair
in the collection of the National Museiun, Melbourne, which were ob-
tained, I beheve, through the .same channel as mine, and bearing
similar data.

Mr. North mentions the fact that my friend, the late Mr. George
Barnard, found a Jabiru's nest near Rockhampton (Queensland), but
these birds did not remain long in possession of it owing to the repeated
attacks of a pair of Wedgc-tailcd Eagles, which ultimately caused the
Jabirus to quit. Mr. North was also informed by Dr. R^imsay that
a pair of Jabirus was known to breed on the border of LaJce
Macquarie, New South Wales, in 1860.

Breeding months, August to March or April.

• I find Mr. S. W. Jackson has a piir d.iled Xichdlson R 25/4/98. Dimenbions
(i) 2-95 X 2 15, (2) 2-8 X 21.

NESTS AXD tGGS OF AVSTRAUAX UIKDS. gyi

ORDER— STEQANOPODES: PELICANS.

FAxMILY^ PHALACROCORACID.'E : CORMOEANTS.

ISUB-FAMII.V PnALACKUfOUAClNiE.

720- — Phalacrocouax carbo, Liuiireus. — (652)
/'. itvvce-hi)//(tin/ice, Stephens.

BLACK CORMORANT.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 66.

Keftrence. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 340.

Previous Descriftions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1S48) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 489 (1865); Potts: Trans. New
Zealand Inst., vol. iu., p. 108 (1871); Duller: Birds of New
Zealand (1873), vol. ii., p. 148 (1888); North: Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 365 (1889) ; Hume : Nests and Eggs Indian Birds
(1875), also (Gates' ed.) vol. iii., p. 270 (1890).

Geuyrop/iira/ Disfrihiitii)n. — Australia iu general and Tasmania;
also New Zealand (including Chatham Islands), the Austro-Malayan
region, Asia, Afiica, Europe, and by way of the Faroe Islands and
Iceland to the Atlantic coast of North America.

y^e.^t, — Rough, sUghtly concave on top, constructed of twgs and
leaves or aquatic herbage, as the case may be ; placed on bushes or low
trees over water, in a rookery, sometimes in company with those of
other species of Cormorants, In some localities, accorchng to Gould,
the nests are composed of seaweed. &c., and placed on ledges of rock.
Dimensions, about 18 inches across by 3 or 4 inches high.

E(/f/>:. — Clutch, three to four : elliptically inclined in shape ; tex-
ture of shell coarse ; siu'face without gloss ; colour, greenish-white more
or less irregularly coated with hme Dimensions in inches of a clutch ;
(1) 2-4 X 1-5, (2) "2-34 x 1-49, (3) 2-32 x 1-44.

Oliscrvufloii:^. — This species, the largest of Australian Cormorants,
is by sound authorities i^ronounccd to be the common P. carho of
Europe. In fact, its range actually stretches right across the world
from New Zealand to Iceland.

Gould found the large Black Cormorant, or Shag, nowhere so
abimdant as in Tasmania, inhabiting not only bays and inlets, but
ascending the rivers, even to the lakes in the middle of the island, on
several of which they breed. The plumage of the Black Cormorant in
general may be described as a dark, glossy, greenish-black, ornamented
on the sides of the neck with fine white feathers diu-ing the breeding,
or summer season. Eyes are green. Dimensions: length, 34 inches;
bill, 4 inches; wing, 13i inches; tail, 8 inches.

g^2 NESTS AXD EGGS 01- AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Sir Walter Buller gives such a true and gi-aphic pictiu'e of the lilack
Shag, that I cauuot help quoting him : " It walks with awkward,
waddhug gait, supporting itself in part with its tail, which is moved
alternately to the right and left at every step. It has a very foetid
odour ; and a person approaching a flock of t hese birds, on the leeward
side, is made sensible of this at a hundred yards or more. Its usual
attitude on the beach is one of repose, with the body inclined forward,
the tail resting full length on the gi-ound, and the head di-awn in upon
the shoulders. When distui-bed it instantly stretches up its ueck,
Ustens and watches attentively for a second or two, and then, after a
few ungainly steps, shoots its white ordui-e along the sands, then rises
into the air with laboured flapping of its wings, and flies off in the
direction of the sea, into which it speechly plimges."

The Black Coi-morant is usually shy, wary, and difficult to approach ;
its eggs are also rare in collections.

Cormorants are deemed vermin simply because they devour fish,
making them scarce. But there were plenty of Cormorants before wliitc
men came to the coimtiy, and abundance of fish too. No, it is ci\dhsed
man and not the poor Cormorants that are destroying our fisheries.
Miss A. M. Ellis, who, with her sisters, was reared on the lower
Blackwood River, West Australia, and can muii a boat with anyone,
carefully collected examples of eggs and made observations of various
Cormorants for me that bred in a rookery on the river, not far from
her home. Miss Ellis described three species — the Black, the Little
Black, and the Little — breeding, as she said, in " a kind of happy
family," on the bent stems and forked branches of tea-trees ( Mi-hilciird).
The large Black consti-ucted its nest of twigs and leaves, while the oilier
two species made theirs entirely of the paper-like bark of the trees.
It was also observed that when the birds were disturbed, the big Black
birds, on leaving their nests, dived into the water, while the other two
kinds flew round overhead. Date, end of August, 1889.
Breeding months, August to Nov(nnbcr.

721- — PiiALACKocoKAX suLCJ iJosTRis, Brandt. — (G56)
LITILE BLACK CORMORANT.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 67.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 376.

Previous Descriptions oj Eggs. — Campbell : Southern ycience Record
(1883); North: Austn. Mus. Cat. p. 367 (1889).

Geoyraphical Didrihution. — -Australia in geneial and Tasmania;
also New Zealand, New Caledonia, and from New Guinea to Borneo.

NeM. — Roughly constructed of sticks, in some instances entirely of
bark, and placed on a stem or fork of a low tree over water, in a
rookery, sometimes in company with those of one or more other species
of Cormorants.

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTTiATJAN BIRDS. 973

Eggn. — Clutcli, three usually ; clliptically inclined in shape ; texture
of shell without gloss; colour, bluish or greenish-white, more or less
coated with lime. Resemble those of the little Conuorant. Dimen-
sions in inches of a clutch : (1) 2 12 x 1-34, (2) 1-98 x 1-31, (3) 1-95 x 1-3.
Of a larger sized set : (1) 2-21 x 1-46, (2) 2-2 x 1-42, (3) 2-2 x 1-43.

Observations. — The Little Black Cormorant, like the large dark
species, is foimd in places conducive to its habits throughout the Con-
tinent, including Tasmania, where it was first reported by Mr. A. E.
Brent, who shot a bird at Houghton, in 1890, and in 1893 saw several
more of the same Idnd.

The bird appears more partial to inland waters of rivers and lagoons
tiian to those of the sea. I have observed them somewhat
plentiful in the Murray district. It has been foimd breeding in
companv with Darters and other Connorants in Lake Moira, New South
Wales. In di\'ing for food I have noticed the periods of time a bird
remained under water varied from twenty to thirty seconds.

Mr. W. White informs me that he found the Little Black Cormo-
rant nesting on a small island at the entrance of St. Vincent Gulf,
in the autumn (May") of 1894. The nests were constmcted of seaweed.
Again diuiug our March he observed the same species breeding on stick
nests on malee bushes near the mouth of the Murray.

Usual breeding months, August to December.

Hundreds of Connorants of different kinds used to roost in the low
trees standing in the lagoon near Prince's Bridge, MelboiU'ne, before
it was filled for the river improvements in 1898. How regularly the
birds used to amve in the evening in small flocks, flying high in the
shape of a V, then circling round their camping quarters before settling
down ! If the weather were boisterous, they would come in sooner,
and they always followed the course of the river, the pied birds being
the most distinguishable on account of their white breasts reflecting
the rays of the setting sun.

722. — Phalacrocor.\x gouldi. Salvadori. — (654)
P. Jeiirof/n.iter-, Gould.

WHITE-BREASTED CORMORANT.

figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 69.
Rejerence. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 396.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1S48) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 492 (1865) ; Campbell : Southern
Science Record (188?); Legge : Proc. Roy. Soc, Tasmania,
p. 133 (1S88) ; North : Austn. Mus. Ca't., p. 366 {18S9) ;
Campbell: Victorian Naturalist (1894); Le Souef; Ibis, p. 421
(1895).

Geographical Distribiifion. — Queensland, New South Wales, Vic-
toria, South and West ( ') Australia, and Tasmania ; also Louisiade
Archijielago.

C.y, NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTnALTAN BIRDS.

2\i'e!if. — Comparatively large, composed of seaweeds of various kinds
and colours, saltbusli. &c., and terraced in colonies on naked rocks near
the sea-shore. Dimensions of an average-sized nest — 18 inches over
all by 3 or 4 inches in height; egg cavity, 8 to 9 inches across by 2 A
inches deep.

Egffs. — Clutch, two to three ; long oval in shape ; texture of shell
coarse ; surface without gloss ; colour, greenish or bhiish-white, unevenly
coated with lime, which becomes more or less soiled with the dirt of
the nest. Dimensions in inches of proper clutches: A (1) 2-5 x 1-43,
(2) 2-5 X 1-4, (3) 2-47 X 1-35; B (1) 2-2.5 x 1-36, (2) 2-22 x 1-35 ;
C (1) 2-18 X 1-48, (2) 2-16 X 1-49.

Ohservations. — The home of this fine Connorant is Tasmania and
Bass Strait, but it probably wanders more or less along the whole of
the eastern and southern coasts of the mainland.

The \^Tiite-breast.ed Cormorant is an exceedingly showy bird, and
in its black and white garb much resembles the Pied. However, the
White-breasted is a much finer built bird, with the naked skin at the
base of the bill and round the eye purple, whereas the same parts in
the Pied are bright-orange.

During the visit of an expedition from the Field Naturalists' Club
of Victoria to the Fumcaux Group, 1893, a rookei7 of these Cormorants
on Storehouse Island, off Flinders Island, was visited. It was the day
after oiu' interesting visit tO' the Gannct rookery. We were turned out
earlier than we expected, at 3 o'clock in the morning, from our snug
little cove under Babel Island. The wind had changed and was blowing
straight in, so there was nothing for it but to kedge the boat out far
enough to get an offing, and make sail for Storehouse Island. We
anchored within a hundred yards of the Cormorant Rookery,
and wore much interested watching the movements of the crowd of
birds, while we enjoyed our breakfast. Having landed, we approached
the rookery carefully for fear of disturbing the Cormorants before we
had an opportunity of taking a successful photograph. It was evident
from their uneasy movements they did not intend to remain for pictures
as the Gannets did on the previous day. Mr. H. P. C. Ashworth and
I took oiu- pictiu-es in turns, getting nearer to the birds each time. The
illustration given was the last one taken before the birds rose and
cleared out to sea.

An examination of the rookery .showed that between 300 and 400
nests were situated or terraced close to each other upon naked granite
boulders by the shore, which were well " white-washed." As the season
(21st November) was somewhat advanced, the majority of the nests,
which were about two or throe feet apart, were mostly occupied by
fledgelings in black down, a little mouldy white on the underneath parts.
The newly-hatched young were quite naked ; however, some of the
nests contained eggs, one, two, or three, but generally a pair, and some
were quite fresh Our invasion had caused some of the older young
to huddle together in bunches of about six or eight. Our loader
remarked that when the old ones returned they would probMl>ly
experience some difficulty in "sorting out'' (heir own.

H

O
'J

Q
w

H

NESTS A.VP EGGS OF Al'STRAUAN BIRVS. Q71;

I must not forget to mention the strong ammoniacal odoiu- of the
place, which was most overpowering, especially to those members of
the expedition whose stomachs were rendered nndnly sensitive by the
motion of our boat at sea.

Colonel Legge mentions that about thirty or forty pairs of White-
breasted Cormorants were breeding on the top of Blanche Kock dimng
his visit to the Action Islands 28th November, 1886. Large colonies
are also known to breed on Cape Frederick Henry (Bruni Island).
Mr. D. Le Souef found a small community of these birds building on
ledges of the cliff, their nests being in close proximity to tliose of the
White-capped Albatross (T. caulus), on Albatross Island. In one
instance, two of the Connoi-ants' nests were placed within a foot of a
brooding Albatross, and both Albatross and nest were plentifully
besprinkled with the excreta of the Cormorants.

723. — PhaL-\crocorax hypoleucus, Brandt. — (653)
P. rcirliii', Gmehn.

PIED CORMORANT.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 68.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 397.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. ii., p. 491 (1865) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 365,
(1889); Walker: Ibis, p. 258 (1892).

Geographical Distrihution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, Soutli, West, and North-west Australia.

Nest. — Somewhat flat, composed of sticks (saltbush, &c.), and placed
in colonies on the ground, sometimes in trees, inland ; on an islet, or
by the sea-shore.

Eggit. — Clutch, two to foiu", usually three ; longish oval in shape ;
texture of shell coarse ; svu'face without gloss ; colour, gi'eenisli-white,
more or less coated with lime. Dimensions in inches of a pair :
(1) 2-42 X 1-47, (2) 2-3 X 1-48.

Ohxervatioiia. — This fine black and white Cormorant is probably
the most common species of Au.stralian Cormorants. (The true
F. rariii>: of Gmelin is said to be restricted to New Zealand.) Except,
perhaps, during the breeding season, it is seen more frequently inland
than the large Black Cormorant.

As other writers have stated, its large size and the contrast of its
pied plumage, render it a most conspicuous object in a landscape,
especially when seen artistically posed on a sandbank, low ledge of rock,
or projecting stump. Tlie birds are gregarious, particularly during the
breeding season, when they may be seen in numbers in certain favoiu'ed
localities on the coast.

976

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRATJAN BIRDS.

Gould mentions the bird as especially abundant on Kangaroo Island,
where ho first saw this species. By a coincidence, that is the locality
whence the examples of eggs in my collection were obtained. Tliey were
collected by Mr. Thos. W. Cornock, an employe of the Adelaide
Museum, from a rookery of about 500 nests on a sand-pit. The time
of the season was remarkable, being the beginning of April (1888), when
incubation had just begrin.

I observed roughly-made dark nests, splashed white with bird-hme,
terraced in small rookeries on isolated rocks on the Abrolhos, also on
islets off Rottnest Island, further south, but all appeared deserted, or
were not in use.

On the 1st October, 1894, Mr. John W. Mellor found a few of these
Cormorants inhabiting a small island in the " Coorong. South Aus-
ti-alia, with Pelicans ; both birds were breeding. The Comiorants had
just commenced to incubate, their nests being situated here and there
amongst or near the Pelican.*'. When the Cormorants flew rovuid, a
Crow instantly appeared, spiked an egg with its bill, and carried it off,
despite Mr. Mellor's endeavours to frighten the black marauder away.
In answer to my further enquiries, Mr. IMellor was good enough to
write : " Comiorants. The one in question is the Pied Cormorant.
I found these birds laying within a few yards of the Pelican rookery.
The nests were about eighteen inches in diameter at the base, and about
twelve inches across the top They were placed on the tramplcd-down
saltbush, and about a dozen or eighteen yards from the water, and were
built about a foot to eighteen inches high, of sticks and sprays of salt-
bush crossed and recrosscd until the whole was quite firm and compact,
and had a neat round appearance, with a cup-shaped depression at the
top, about a couple of inches deep, in which were placed either two,
three, or four eggs. The birds had not long taken up their breeding
quarters, as some nests had only one fresh egg in them, wliile others
were barely fini.shed in constniction. Mr. White tells me that he

has never heard of them breeding in the spring before, he having found
them breeding on small islands off Kangaroo Island on several occasions
in the autumn, generally starting about the beginning of March, two
to four- eggs in a clutch. The late Mr. Samuel White, the well-known
naturalist of Adelaide, who is quoted by Gould in his works on Aus-
tralian ornithology, found these birds breeding on a sand-spit in the
Bay of Shoals, at Kingscote, Kangaroo Island, South Australia, on the
24th May, 1875. An extract from his note-book says : ' On a sand-spit
in the Bay of Shoals, at Kingscote, Kangaroo Island, South Australia,
which is gi'own over with bushes, these birds were in thousands ; the
season was nearly over, there being only about forty nests with eggs,
but the young birds covered an acre of gi-ound as thick as they could
stand, and the stench was sickening. Their nests, as usual, were made
of a few sticks and bits of seaweed placed close together on the bushes
that had been trodden down.' "

Gould mentions, on the authority of Dr. Latham, that the Pied
CoiTnorant also breeds in trees. I possess eggs that were Inkcii from
nests in trees in the Cape Otway district, Victoria.

As far north as Adele Island, North-west Coast, Mr. James Walker,

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

977

of H.M.S. "Penguin," on 2nd Maj% 1891, observed a colony of I'ied
Connoiants breeding. The nests were rudely constructed of twigs, and
built on tlie bushes about three feet from the gi'ound. Each nest con-
tained three eggs, placed in a slightly defined hollow. Numerous dead
fishes, some small, some large, were strewn about, and the aroma of
the place was " decidedly more pungent than agreeable." The birds
themselves were somewhat shy, and did not admit of a very near
approach before taking vnng.

Tlie Pied Cormorants have been found breeding in the spring from
September to November, and in autumn from March to May.

724. — Phjllacrocor.v.x melanoleucus, Yieillot. — (655)
LITTLE CORMORANT.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 70.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 398.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 366 (1889).

Geographical Dixtrihution. — Australia in general and Tasmania;
also New Zealand, New Caledonia, New Guinea, up to Moluccas and
Pelew Islands, and west to Lombok.

Nest. — Constructed of sticks, &e., lined in.side with leaves, in some
instances biiilt entirely of bark, and placed on the stem or branch of
a low tree, or on bushes, such as polygonum, in water, in a rookery,
occasionally in company with those of other species of Cormorants,
Darters, Herons, &c. Dimensions of an average nest, about 12 inches
across.

Eggs. — Clutch, three to four, occasionally five ; inclined to oval in
shape; texture of shell coarse; surface without gloss; colour, bluish or
gi-eenish-wliite, irregularlv coated with lime. Dimensions in inches of
a proper clutch: (1) '1-98 x 1-27, (2) 1-92 x 1-23, (3) 1-87 x 1-26,
(4) 1-82 X 1-23; of a more roundish set : (1) 181 x 1-32, (2) 1-79 x 1-32,
(3) 1-75 X 1-32, (4) 1 -74 X 1-32.

OhservatuDi^. — Tlie little black and white Cormorant, the smallest
of the Austrahan species, is widely distributed over Australia, including
Tasmania, besides some extra- Australian localities suitable to its habits.

It is not only a lover of the armlets of the sea, but of river reaches,
and lonely lagoons far inland. In a quiet nook, in the most unexpec-
ted of places, one may frequently find the Little Cormorant fishing
alone.

It was reported to Gould, probably by Gilbert, that in the Poi-t
Darwin distiict this species constructs its nest and rears its young in
the tea-trees (Melaleuca) bordering the rivers near the coast, seven or
eight pairs associating for that purpose in a single tree. At that time
the birds are particularly pugnacious.
62

gyS NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSl^RALIAN BIRDS.

In a similar situation, but at another corner of the Continent,
namely, Lower Blackwood River, near Cape Leeuwin, the Misses Ellis
informed me that they observed the Little Cormorant breeding in nests
solely made of the paper-like bark of the tea-tree, and in company with
other brooding Connorants, namely, the Large Black and Little Black,
all their nests being placed from one to five feet above the surface of
the water. The eggs kindly presented to me by iVliss A. M. Ellis were
dated 23rd August, 1889.

Mr. Hany Barnard found a rookery of about fifteen or twenty
nests of Little Cormorants in a clump of saplings in the centre of a
large swamp, three or four nests being in a tree, witli here and there a
nest of the stately White-necked (Pacific) Heron.

Mr. S. W. Jackson writes : " I found a colony of these birds breeding
tliis season (1898) on a point of land iimning into a big swamp near
South Grafton, on September 11th.

" The nests were built in swamp oak and eucalyptus trees, the
altitudes varying from twelve to forty feet. In one small eucalyptus
tree we found over 260 eggs, the tree possessing about 100 nests, some
nests containing four eggs, others five, some two and one, but the
majority contained three to four each. From one swamp oak tree we
took 160 eggs, and many others from adjoining trees.

" The trees were simply alive with birds sitting upon nests, and
their peculiar croaking noise sounded like thousands of frogs. Tiu^ir
eggs vary much in size and shape.

" My friend, Mr. T. Vesper, accompanied me, and also my brother,
and we had a fair share each of egg-blowing to do. All eggs found
were fresh."

Gould was infonned that the Little Cormorant lays six eggs some-
times. I have heard of Connorants laying seven eggs, but am of opinion
that such cases are combination clutches,

Diuing a visit to Riverina, September, 1894, I saw examples of
eggs of the Little Connorant collected in a swamp near the Edwards
River. I am infonned that young Connorants just fledged are excellent
eating, and that it takes an export to distinguish them from the flesh
of ducks.

Usual laying months, August or September (.o November.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTRALIAN BIRDS. g^g

Sub-family — Pi.otin.k : daktehs.

725. — Plotus sov^ HoLLANDiiE, Gould. — (657)
DARTER.

Fij;ure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 75.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 417.

Pre-iious Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. ii., p. 497 (1865) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 362
(18S9) ; also Kec. Austn. Mus , vol. i., p. 147 (1891), and vol.
ii., p. 21 (1892).

GeofiraphicaJ Dislrihittioii. — Whole of Australia ; also New Guinea
and New Zealand (accidental).

Nest. — A platform, about 15 inches across, slightly concave, of twigs,
lined inside with a few leaves ; situated, in companies, usually in low
trees in a swamp or overhanging a stream, &c.

Eggs. — Clutch, three to four, rarely five ; elongated oval in shape,
more or less pointed at one end ; texture of shell coarse ; surface
without gloss ; colour, outer coating of lime, dull or chalky-white, which,
on being removed, reveals a greenish-white shell. Dimensions in inches
of a proper clutch : (1) 2-34 x 1-45, (2) 2-23 x 1-46, (3) 2-2 x 1-46.

0})xtrvatioiiii. — The Plotus, or, as it is commonly called, the Darter,
is a shy and seclusive Cormorant-like bird, and, although nowhere
plentiful, is found throughout AustraUa, frequenting lagoons near the
sea as well as in the interior. I recollect only once seeing it in its
native element. It swims low, the motions of its head and neck at a
distance resembling the movement of a snake on the water, hence,
I suppose, the name Snake Bird, which is occasionally applied to it.

As far as has been observed. Darters feed entirely under water,
swimming with wngs half expanded, but locomotion is only effected by
their webbed feet. The bird pursues its prey (fish, &c.), taking it with
the peculiar darting (hence the vernacular name Darter) or jerky action
of the head and neck^ which has been compared to a man poising a
spear or harpoon before throwing it. Tliis darting, though short, is
so violent as to effectually " stiike " the fish the bird is pursuing. The
bird " flies " under water even more swiftly than it can through the
air.*

Part of the Darter's plumage is handsomely marked. I think it
was in the New Zealand coui-t of the Melbom-ne International Exhi-
bition of 1888 that I saw ladies' muffs, &c., made of Darter skins. The
technical description of this interesting bird is long, btit its plumage
may be described as glossy greenish-black, beautifully ornamented by

' The special mechanism of the Darter's neck is technically explained by
Mr, W. A. Forbes in the P.Z.S. (1S82), pp. 210—212,

980

Xi.STS A. YD EGGS OF MSTRAT-JAX BIRDS.

lanceolate-striped markings of white on the scapiilaries of the wings.
The male has nisty-red on the throat ; the female is Ughter coloured
about the head and neck; feet and bill are yellowish; total length,
about 31 inches.

Tlie late Mr. Elsey wrote to Gould ; " The Plotus is common here
(Victoria R.), and excellent eating. During Febniary and March it
was incubating. It chooses large trees that hang over the water above
and through the mangi'oves, and in these a number of them build a
colony of large, coarse, flattish nests of dead sticks and twigs, which
seem, from the quantity of dirt about them and their stained appearance,
to be used year after year. Each season they place in the centre a few
fresh gi-een leaves, and on these they lay three or four white eggs, with
a very earthy, opaque, but brittle shell. We have enjoyed many flue
meals of these eggs, sometimes getting from forty to fifty in a single
tree. Both birds sit."

Mr. Wm. Bateman, a fishennan, who visited rookeries in Lake
Moii'a, Riverina, informed mc that Darters sometimes breed in company
with Cormorants. Yovmg Darters, while the down is on, and unable to
fly, vomit on the intruders lobsters and fish in various stages of
digestion they may have swallowed, and then tumble into the water,
diving twenty or thirty yards. If the nests are re-visited next day,
the young are found in their places again. Perhaps the old bii'ds can-y,
or help, them back. The young are of comical appearance, with long
bills and necks, the heads being the same thickness, or, rather, thin-
ness, as the necks, and their bodies are dressed in striking j'ellowish
down.

The usual breeding months arc October and November. It Wivs
stated that Darters used to breed in the neighbourhood of Brisbane
about December and January, while, accoi-ding to the late Mr. Elsey,
they used to lay in still more northern parts during February and
March.

On the 18th September, Mr. S. W. Jackson, accompanied by his
brother and Mr. Vesper, found a colony of about twelve pairs of these
birds breeding in swamp oak (CamnriiKi ) trees, which were leaning
over Harrington Neck, near South Grafton. A poetical picture of
the locality from a photogi'aph taken by Mr. Jackson is here repro-
duced (see illustration). The nests were ten in number, and all
contained three eggs each, which were slightly incubated. Mr.

Jack-son observes: — "Both birds sit. The nests are built at a

variety of altitudes, some only six feet from the ground, others thirty
feet high, two or three nests being in the one ti'ee. Wlien the nests
are being robbed, the birds soar high above, but return immediately
and sit on them again after the eggs have gone. Even if the nest be
removed, the poor bird will sit on the limb for hours at the place the
nest was situated. I onl\' once before found the nests of those Inrds,
and that was on the 9tli November, 1894, up the Clarence River, about
five miles above South Grafton. The nests were five in number, and
were built in swamp oak trees leaning over the river bank.

" One of the nests on this date contained five eggs, the others three
each, so I am now perfectly sure that (line is the usual number laid
for a sitting."

N£SrS AXD EGGS Ol- AC ST KALI AN BIRDS. ySl

FAMILY— SULID^ : GANNETS.

726.— "^II.A >EI!l!ATOI!. G. R. ClaV.- -( Gli 1)

GANNET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 76.

Kiference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Miis., vol. xxvi., p. 428.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Potts : Trans. New Zealand Inst.,
vol. ii., p. 78 (1870) ; Hutton : Trans. New Zealand Inst.,
vol. iii., p. 112 (1S71) ; Buller : Birds of New Zealand (1873),
vol. ii., p. 181 (1S88) ; Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1S83) ; also Victorian Naturalist (1S94) : North : .\ustn. Mus.
Cat , p. 363 (1889I.

Geuyraphical Distribution. — Seas of Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoiia, South and West Australia and Ta.smania ; also New Zealand.

Xe<t. — Low. built upon the gi-ound of the suiTOunding soil and debins
scraped up and well, trodden, and slightly concave on the top. Dimen-
sions : outside circumference about 5 feet, height 4 to 5 inches ; concave
top 7 to 8 inches across by lA inches deep. A rookery on Cat Island,
off Flinders Island, eastern entrance to Bass Strait, measured about
150 yards in circumference, the nests being placed in fairly regular rows,
30 inches apart, each nest from centre to centre being separated by e.xactly
the same distance.

Ei/y-'. — Clutch, one ; elongated oval in form ; texture of she'l coarse ;
surface without gloss ; coloiu", the thick and rough limy coatings dull, or
chalky-white, more or less stained with dirty-brown (the longer the egg
remains in the nest, the dirtier the appearance). If the coating be re-
moved a bluish-wliite shell is revealed. Dimensions in inches of selected
examples: (1) 3-4 x 1-95, (2) 3-12 x 1-88, (3) 3-12 x 1-85, (4) 3-0 x 1-9,
(,^) 3-06 X 1-87, (6) 3-02 X 1-8.

Ohservations. — This fine Gannet is the most commonly known to
Australians,, being fotind round the southern part of the Continent from
Queensland to West Australia, including Tasmania, where probably it
is most abundant.

The only large rookeries I am aware of are in Bass Strait. There
arc small ones in New Zealand.

To see a company of Gannets fishing, is a sight to be remembered.
From aloft they plunge nearly vertically into the water, sending up
wreaths of sea spray several feet high as they enter.

Gould pleasantly 'ivrote : "I foimd the Sula (nistralis generally
dispersed over the seas washing the shores of Taslnania, but most
niunerous on the south side of the island. The Mewstone, the vSoutli
Cape, the I'ock at the mouth of D Entreca.steaux's Channel, and the low
Actjeon Islands were tenanted by hundreds diuing the period of my
visit in 1839 : and it was also seen, but in less numbers, alon? the entire

982

NESTS AND EGGS Of AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

coast of South Australia. Much as has been said respecting the natural
stupidity of other species of the genus sw'f/ — Boobies, as they are called-
the present appeared to be the Booby par excellence, as evidenced by
the manner in which I captiu-ed the specimens in my collection. Observ-
ing about fifty fine adult birds reposing on the flat top of a low rock
on one of the Actaeons, I directed my boatman to row cautiously, that
I might endeavour to get a shot at them ; I was soon not only within
range, but too near to iise my lai'ge duck g^un, loaded as it was with
large shot; I determined therefore to shoot them on the wing as they
flew from their resting place. Judge of my surprise when I found that
neither the near approach of the boat nor oiu- speaking to each other
startled them in the least. Taking one of the men witli me, I stepped
on shore and approached the motley assembly, which was still sitting
in close an-ay on the rock, and which did at length exhibit some degree
of siu-prise and uneasiness at the intrusion, but even then was so little
disturbed that we succeeded in captimng five fine birds with the hand
before the remainder had shuffled oft' to the ledge of the rock and taken
wing. Had this occurred at a breeding place it woidd not have excited
my astonishment, for I was aware that the Sii/a iassaiiri would allow
itself to be so taken at that period ; but I did not expect that the pi'esent
species would admit of being captiu-ed while merely at rest. Tliis
apparent want of caution or stupidity may in all probability be attributed
to the fact that their haamts on these islands had rarely been intnided
upon : boats the natives of the southern parts of Tasmania, never
possessed, and the visits of civilized man must have been few and far
between."

In 1893 a party from the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, includ-
ing myself, after spending an adventurous and anxious night in a double-
ended cutter-rigged boat of about nine tons, landed on Cat Island, off
the east coast of Flinders Island. The following is the official stoiy of
oxir good leader (Mr. Joseph Gabriel), as told before the club on our
return : " 20th November. At daybreak I was called by skipper Holt,
to find the boat swinging by two cables and the wind blowing half a gale,
but fortimately not from the dreaded quarter, viz., the east. I took
watch so as to allow Mr. Holt to have a rest, he having been up all night.
Soon after daybreak we had a consultation, as we were very dubious of
landing, on accovint of the high sea running. To make matters still
more annoying, we could see the Cormorant rookery on Storehouse
Island, and the Gannet rookery on Cat Island, in full swing. This
latter we had risked all and ventured so far to see. But oiu- anxiety
was soon .set at rest by Mr. Holt, who, with our willing assistance, heaved
up the anchors and sailed^ under tlie staysail, to what tiuiicd out to be
a more sheltered spot nearer Cat Island. We landed with some difficulty
per dingy, at 10 a.m., and soon found our way to the Gannet rookeiy.
Here all oiu" troubles and seasick qualms were soon forgotten and amply
repaid by the wonderful sight which stood revealed before us. We
found Ijctween 2,400 and 2, GOO birds (roughly estimated by measuring)
seated in the locality on their nests. The birds were in nowise put out
by our presence, and we photogra])hcd to our hearts' content. The
nests were built on slightly raised mounds of clay and a good admixtiu'e

H
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7^

■f)

7.

i^ESIS AXD EGGS 01' AVSTRAUAN HINDS.

983

of guano, of which the place smelt strongly, and were composed of twigs,
algse and polyzoa. Each nest contained one egg only, and not two, as
stated by some authors. Hovering over the I'ookeiy, and coming and
going from seaward, were the mates of the sitting birds. It was the
prettiest of sights to see these birds alight alongside their mates,
kissing and caressing them in a most loving and affectionate
way. Occasionally one of the new comei's would eject from
its throat a fish which it had brought in from the sea. It is
really wonderful the size of fish they carry — fifteen inches was
the measurement of a pike which we found lying near one of ihe
nests, and we saw the remains of others wliich must have mea^ui'ed
still more. Frequently we would see a handsome Gannet rise on its
feet off its egg, and flap its wings to stretch its feathered limbs ; should
the bird be so mifortimate as to lose its balance, it soon regained its
position, hastened, however, by its neighboius, who viciously pecked
at it, as much as to say, ' Keep voiu- own groimd.' The nests, as far
as the inequality of the gi'ovmd woidd allow, were arranged in symmet-
rical rows, and were about 30 inches apai-t. The diameter of the
rookery was about 50 yards, and it was circular in shape. The birds
had been at work some time, as we found several stages of giowth of
yoimg, from the half-gi-own gosling down to that just hatched ; but
the gi'eater nmnbcr of nests was occupied by eggs, many quite fresh.
The yoimg, when covered with down, look very handsome. The old
birds seemed to defend the eggs more fiercely than they did the young,
and I had to approach them with considerable respect, requiring the
aid of a bucket and fishing basket for them to peck at while securing
their eggs. Promenading around the rookeiy, and sometimes through
the rows, were to be seen those impudent scavengers, the Silver and
Pacific Gulls, waiting their chance (a very poor one) of taking the eggs
and pieces of fish lying about. It seems almost ludicrous that this
should occiu\, the Gannet lying so close on its egg, and being so large a
bird, one blow from its powerful beak would kill so small a bird as the
Silver Gull. After our artists had taken photographs from different
points of view (see ilkistrations : " A Gannet Rookeiy," and " Gannets
Nesting "), we veiy reluctantly retired from this wonderful rookery.
As the wind was still rising we hurried on board, and soon left the
dangerous anchorage, very nearly getting on to the rocks in making our
first tack, just being saved by the excellent seamanship of our skipper.
After beating about in a nasty, choppy sea for three or four hours, we
succeeded in getting shelter in a snug little cove under Babel Island."

To these remarks 1 may add that the young or newly-hatched birds
were naked, or nearly so, and of a leaden or dark-slate colour'. The
older ones were clothed in down of snowj' whiteness, oddly contrasting
with the black feet and bill. When we approached, the old birds would
simply give a goose-like cackle, making a sound not inappropriately
resembling the words "get away, get away!" at the same time fencing
us with their wings and formidable bills. The date of om' visit (20th
November) appeared to be about the middle of the laying season.
Probably October or the month previous is the month they fii'st com-
mence to lay, as I had received eggs taken from the same rookeiy during

984

.A/ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

that month. They were kmdly collected for me by Captain Anderson
and Mr. J, Kell}% who were in the steamer, " Lady Loch," in search
of tidings of the missing vessel, " May Jermings.'' It would, however,
be interesting to be able to recoi'd when the young are fully feathered
and leave — possibly March or April, when the Mutton Birds commence
to move.

Besides Babel Island, another large Gannet rookery is stated to
exist on the Black Pyramid, on the opposite side of Bass Strait; that
island was seen at a distance and reported to be " white with birds '' by
the naturalists who' visited Albatross Island.

Captain Fermaner, a well-known colonist of the olden days, told
me that Gannets used to lay on a rock off Portland Bay early in
September. I had specimens of eggs from that loc^ility, 1870.

In his " History of the Birds of New Zealand," Su- Walter Bidler
gives an exceedingly popular chapter on the Australian Gannet. In
one instance Sir Walter quotes from Captain Fairchild, who states :
" The habits of the Gannet are so veiy strange that it may interest you
if I give tlie results of my own experience with these birds. So far
as I am aware, their only breeding 2>laces off the coast of New Zealand
are on Gannet Island, lying to the east, on some small islands in the
Haui'aki Gulf, near Coromandel, and near to the Great Barrier, and
on White Island, in the Bay of Plenty. At all these places the birds
congregate in gi-eat numbers. Tliey commence laying about the 18tli
September, and it takes about thirty-tlu-ee days to hatch out the young.
The female lays two eggs ; she keeps one, the male taking charge of
the other, and each one hatches its ovra and afterwards looks after the
wants of the young one. About the 1st Februaiy the same thing is
repeated. The second hatching takes place about the fii-st week in
March. I hardly think that there can possibly be any mistake in this,
as I have carefully watched the habits of these birds dui'ing the last
twenty years, whenever an opportunity offered."

This is certainly a most interesting statement, and with twenty
years' experience at his back, one can hardly doubt Captixin Fairchild.
But I venture to assert that it needs yet to be proved that the female
Gannet lays two eggs, the male hatching one, and that a second laying
takes place in Febi-uary. Were a second laying to take place, I fancy
Gannets would be far more numerous than they are.

From my own observations of the Gannet rookei-y on Cat Island,
which, however. I had only two brief opportunities of examining, I saw no
eggs in unprotected nests, which certainly would liave been the case
had one or the other bird been absent on a fishing cniise, feeding ; of
c;ourse, that is presuming both male and female h;id an egg to tend.
What about Gulls and other enemies hovering round foi- unguarded
eggs? Moreover, birds were continually coming in from the sea to
feed their brooding mates or young. The meetings were strikingly
affectionate, the birds kissing and caressing (bird fa.shion) in a most
loving manner, and appearing concerned in only one home.

With regard to the second laying mentioned by Capt<iin Fairchild,
it is quite possible to find fresh eggs of the late laying birds at the
beginning of February without there being a second brood, and that the

H

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I

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o
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H

o

.VESTS AXD EGGS OJ- AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. ^85

laying seasou merely extends from September to February. 1 have
had fresh eggs from Gannet rookeries takeu respectively iu October,
November, December, aud January.

I received from Mr. J. C. McLean, of Gisbome, specimens of eggs
dated 21st December, 1888, from a Gannet rookery on Kidnapper Cape,
near Napier, New Zealand. Mr. McLean visited that rookeiy five
successive seasons. He estimated it consisted of over 300 nests, which
never contained more than a single egg or young. These nests were
on the gfrouud, and formed of dirt, having a rim composed of a little
coarse sea^weed, and distant one from another (centre to centre) about
30 inches. One measured as follows: width at base, 21 inches; depth
outside, 3 inches ; cavity, 9 inches across by 1 A inches deep. Mr. McLean
was also kind enough to send me pliotogiaphs of this most interesting
bird colony, the fii-st pictures, I believe, ever taken of a Gamiet rookery.

727. — SfL.v CYANOPS, Simdevall. — (662)
MASKED GANNET.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, vol. vii., pi. 77.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 430.

Previous Descripliotts of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of .Vustralia (1848),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 506 (1S65) ; Legge : Birds of
Ceylon, p. iiSi (18S0) ; Crowfoot (Metcalfe): Ibis, p. 269
(1885); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., app. (1889); Campbell:
Victorian Naturalist (1889) ; Walker : Ibis, p. 257 (1892).

Geographical Distribution. — Seas of North-west Australia, Northern
Territoiy, Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria ( ?) ; also tropical
seas of the world.

Xest. — Constructed of herbage, sometimes only a few pieces of dry
gi-ass, sticks, &c. — often no nest at all. Situation (on Phillip aud Nepean
Islets, adjacent to Norfolk Island), on the flat ground about the hill
tops and sides ; on some of the tropical islands the nesting place is merely
a slight concavity in the coral sand.

Ecjgs. — Clutch, one to two, usually two ; elliptical in shape, both ends
nearly pointed alike ; texture of shell coarse ; surface slightly glossy ;
colour, hmy coating, dull-white more or less stained with brown,
obsciu-es a bluish-white shell. Dimensions in inches of selected
examples: (1) 2-8 x 1-84, (2) 2-72 x 1-77, (3) 2-69 x 1-9, (4) 2-55 x 1-71.

Observatiom. — The Masked Gannet is chiefly found in tropical seas,
occm-ring in Australian regions as far south as Norfolk Island, where
it breeds.

Gould did not succeed in procming examples of this Gannet diuing
his own researches in Australia ; but it once came luider his notice
diu-ing his voyage from Hobart to Sydney, 1839, when, on approaching

986

NESTS AW EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Port Jacksou, liis attention was attracted by a Gaunet with a darkly-
coloured face, wliicli was very conspicuous as the bird flew round the
ship, but, to his regret, the bird kept at too great a distance for a
successful shot.

However, subsequently, Gould was indebted to the officers of H.M.S.
'■ Fly," under command of Captain Blackwood, for examples of the bird,
which were found breeding in considerable numbers on Rainc Island.
Ton-es S.rait.

Mr. F. M. Nobbs, of Norfolk Island, who presented me with the eggs
of this species, taken from adjacent islets, 3ays : " I think the Gannet
is the clumsiest on the ground of all the birds which frequent this
locality, but once it gets on .the wing, it seems one of the proudest. I
have often watched them from the whaling boats dai-ting down after
their prey. They descend at a wonderfully rapid i-atc, and must go
to a considerable depth below the svu'face of the water, for they keep
under for a long time. The flying fish seem to be their favoiu-ite food ;
but I have never seen a Gannet pursue them while they (the fish) ai'e
flying. A young bii-d is of odd appearance, and would make an excellent
comic pictm-e of a judge m a wig."

Both male and female assist in the task of incubation. Laying
mouths, November to December, but the season may be said to extend
from October to January. At Maiden, in mid-Pacific, the Masked
Gannet sometimes lays in March, on the east side of Ihc lagoon there.

When Professor Moseley, in the " Challenger," visited Raine Island,
31st August, 1874. two species of Gaimets, the Brown and the Masked,
were nesting on the gi-ound, and especially on a plot of ground quite flat
and bare of vegetation, possibly the site of the dwellings of the men
employed in erecting the beacon in 1844.

The Brown Gannet makes a slight nest of gi-een twigs and gi-ass ;
the Masked makes a circular hole in the eaa-th, about 1^ inches deep.

A third species of Gaainet (S. pinratw) has red feet, which
at once distinguish it from the others. Professor Moseley saw one or
two of theii- nests made in the bushes, like those of the Noddies, raised
six inches above the gi-oimd.

Booby Island, in Torres Strait, which is only two-thirds of a mile
in circumference and thirty feet to forty feet in height, would appear to
be a remarkable spot for bii'ds. Not only do Boobies and Sooty Terns
frequent it in great numbers, but many land bii'ds also. As Professor
Moseley pointed out, in his "Notes by a Naturalist." very likely the
rock at certain seasons is used as a resting place for birds crossing from
New Guinea to tlie ni.Tinlaiid or vice versa. The island is described
as liaving a small gully ruauing nearly across it, whicli, afl'ording shade
and shelter, allows of the growth of a scrub of a shrub-like species of
fig. In addition to this vegetation there is little else, except sc<inty
grass and a few herbs. Diu'iug the visit of the " Challenger," 9th
September, 1874, the following Ijirds were shot: Su])crb Fniit Pigeon
( I', xii/iirlius). Black-backed Quail (T. moculoxa ), a Landrail, IMei;a])od<'
(M. cfi/jjirrfi/i ), Bee Eater f .)/( rnjis). Yellow Wiiitc> Eye ( Ziixtrrdjis
hitea), a Thickhead ( I'achijciphola), Sacred Kingfisher ( lltilrijitn ),
besides three other species seen.

NESTS AXD EGGS Oh AUSTKAtlAN BIRDS. 987

728. — Slla rit^cATOR, Liunjeus. — (664)
RED-LEGGED GANNET.

Eigure. — Gould; B^rds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 79.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 432.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
(1889); Sugars: Victorian Naturalist (1S95).

<,'i(>[/r(i/jhic(t/ Distribution. — Seas of North-west Australia. Northern
Territory and Nortli Queeiishuid ; also the tropical and sub-tropical seas
of the world, except the Pacific coast of America.

Nest. — Flat, scantily constnicted of coarse twigs, &c., and placed
upon the grovuid or on clumps of herbage or low trees.

Effffs. — Clutch, one usually ; oval in shape, or slightly more com-
pressed at one end; textiu'e of shell coarse; surface without gloss;
colour, a dull-white limy coating covers a bluish-wliite sliell, which may
b; partially visible in placesi where the coating has been scraped or chipped
off. Dimensions in inches: 2'33 x ]"56.

Observations. — ^The Red-legged Gannet is a common species along the
northern shores of Australia and breeds in gi'eat numbers on Raine
Islet, apparently a locality rich in Gannets of no less than three varieties.

Again Gould has to quote the excellent obsei-vations of Macgillivray,
who says ; " With the exception of one bird, which perched ou the rigging,
and was caught while at sea in the neighboiu'hood of the Keeling Islands,
we foimd this species only on Raine's Islet, a vegetated sand-bank in the
line of the Great Bairier Reef. When we landed there, on the 29tli
of May, it appeared tO' me that the breeding season was then over ; but
I was fortunate enoiigh to find a solitaiy bird sitting upon its nest,
which contained a single egg. The nest consisted of a few roots of a
creeper, common on the island, forming a platform eighteen inches in
diameter, laid upon a tuft of herbage. A few days after this, the
Gannets, having been much molested, entirely deserted the island
during the day, retiuTiing at night in a body of several hundreds, to
roost on the ground and low bushes near the centre of the island."

Dr. Thos. H. Streets, from observations made of the Red-legged
Gannet diu'ing the United States' Nortli Pacific Surveying Expedition,
1873-75, writes: "Locality, Fanning Group, North Pacific. Several
specimens were taken at sea, in the vicinity of this group of islands.
When far away from land, they flew aboard the ship in the evenings,
and roosted on the yai-d. They exliibited no sign of fear, but were
calmly captiu-ed by the man who went aloft. In the majority of our
specimens the tail is dark — it is white in the adidt plimiage. On
Palmyra Island, their principal breeding place, the period of their incu-
bation was over at the time of our visit, in December ; but the yoimg
were not yet fledged. The latter were very numerous, they covered

g88 .VESTS AA'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

the trees and bushes, and looked like gi-cat balls of snow-white down.
The nests are rudely consti-ucted of coarse twigs, and are built on the
low trees.

" We arriN'ed at Christmas Island one mouth later, in Januaiy, and
there we found the Gaunets still sitting on their eggs ; few or no young
were to be seen. This difference is probably induced by the physical
conditions siuTounding them. One of the islands is situated almost
directly on the equator, exposed to the fiercest rays of the tropical sun ;
it is devoid of fresh water, and it rarely or never rains ; the vegetation
is scanty and stunted, and life in general lias a. veiy unequal straggle
for existence. On the other island. Palmyra, a condition of things
directly opposite to these exists. The Gannets of Christmas island
have a vei-y curious habit, which, as far as oui- observations extended,
is confined to those of that island. Under theii' nests, which were
quite low on accooint of the stunted condition of the shrubbery, were
mounds, one or two feet high, built of twigs, and in some instances
soUdly cemented together by then- excrement. It probably affords them
diversion, diu-ing the monotonous period of incubation, to break off all
the twigs within reach of their bill and to drop them under their nests.
These mounds fimiish evidence of the nests being occupied for several
successive years ; for the lean bushes could not furnish a sufiicient amount
of ^twigs to build them up in a single breeding season."

Following up my notes on Maiden Island in the '' Victorian
Natm-alist," Mr. R. S. Sugars gives some interesting remarks on Gamiets,
gleaned by his cousin, Mr. John McCidlough. The period of incu-
bation in the case of the Red-legged Gannet was timed at forty-five
days in one instance. Mr. Sugars was good enough to present me with
an egg of this species, dated 23rd October, 1894. These birds were
obsei-ved breeding from the middle of August to December.

729. — SuLA SULA, Linnaeus. — (663)
S. fiber, Linnaeus.

BROWN GANNET (BOOBY).

Figure.— GouM : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 78.

Reference.— Cai. Birds Bnt. Mus., vol. .\xvi., p. 436.

Previous Description of £^|'.t.— Gould : Birds of Australia, Hand-
book, vol. ii., p. 507 (1S65); Legge : Birds of Ceylon, p. 1179
(1880); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 364 (1889); Campbell:
Victorian Naturalist (1889) ; Walker : Ibis, p. 257 (1892).

a,-i,yriiph,nil /Jis/rihulli,/i .—Seas of North-west Australia, Northeni
Territory, and Nortli Queensland ; also the tropical and sub-tropical seas
of tlio world, except the Pacific coast of America.

,Yf.s7. Somewhat flat, slovenly constructed of dry herbage, and

situated upon the gi'ound, in colonies, upon certain islands in the Tropics.

Effgs.— Clutch, two usually, tlu-ec occasionally; elliptically inclined
in siiape; texture of shell coarse; surface without gloss; colour.

NESTS A. YD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. qSq

a dull-white limy coatiug (more or less soiled with dirt) obsciues
a bluish-white shell. Size vai-iable. Dimensions in inches (large
example) : 2-62 x 1-74 ; small example : 2-3 x 1-47.

Observations. — As far as Australia is concerned, this Gaiinet has only
been observed in the seas of the northern coast.

Gould gives an interesting extract from Macgilhvray regai'ding this
species of Booby in ToiTes Strait, who says : " I foimd it breeding only
upon Bramble Quay, although I once, on Raines Islet, found a solitary
egg. The nest is slovenly made, of dried herbage, a foot in diameter,
with scarcely any cavity, and contains two eggs, of which, m every
instance, one was clean and the other very dirty. The eggs, which are
white, vaiT considei-ably in size. Tlie largest measvu'cd 2'1 inches by
l,'.j inches; the smallest, 2^*^ inches by It J inches, and one of average
size, 2i inches by 1 J inches. Both sexes incubate ; and the birds, while
sitting on their eggs, allowed of a very near approach, and before flying
off disgorged the contents of their stomachs, chiefly a species of Clujjea.
I need scarcely add that their bite is very severe. Dming our visit to
Darnley Island, I observed several tame Boobies among the native
villages, generally perched on the canoes hauled up on the beach. These
birds were allowed their full liberty, and after fishing in the weirs upon
the reefs until thev had procured a sufficiency of food, returned to the
huts."

The members of the " Chevert " Expedition also found this bird
breeding in great numbei-s on Bramble Quay, 1875.

Laying months, November and December.

On Maiden Island this Gannet is common, nesting upon the small
islands in the lagoon. They have also been found breeding in the
Northern Tropics in April.

Colonel Legge observes that the nestling of the Brown Gannet is
covered with brownish down, darker on the back than on the chest ;
but when fii'st hatched the young is quite naked.

FAMILY— FREGATID^ : FRIGATE BIRDS.

730. — Frf.g.\t.\ aquila, Linnaeus. — (658)
FRIGATE BIRD.

Figure. — Audubon : Birds of America, vol. vii., pi. 421.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 443.

Previous Descriftions of Eggs. — Lerjge : Birds of Ceylon, p. 1205
(1880) ; Campbell : Southern Science Record (1883).

Geographical Distribution. — Seas of Northern Territory, North
Queensland, New South Wales, and Victoria, (accidental) ; also New
Zealand, New Guinea, and tropical and sul>tropical seas in general.

Xest. — Composed of twigs and leaves, piled up about two feet from
the gi'oimd, or placed on rocks or low shinibs — mangroves, &c. — in
rookeries on certain tropical islands.

QQO XESTS AA'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Eijys. — Clutch, one ; varies in form from a, roimd to a long oval,
more compressed at one end ; texture of shell somewhat coarse and thin ;
colom', white, slightly coated with lime, imparting to the eggs a chalky
appearance. Dimensions in inches (long oval): 282 x 186 ; round
oval: 2-65 X 1-94.

Ohservafiom. — The Frigate Bird, or Man-of-War Hawk as it is some-
times called, enjoys a world-encircling habitat as far as tropical seas are
concerned, therefore it is to be found off Northern Australia. However,
a few sti-agglers get into more temjoerate waters. A specimen was
captured at Brighton, Port Phillip, and is now in the National Museum,
Melbourne. I am not sui'e whether the bird has been taken off the
New South Wales coast, but Sir Walter Bidler mentio'us an example
was captm'ed alive on the ea.st coast of New Zealand in Febniary, 1863.

The Frigate Bird is well known in books to almost every school-boy
by its long, slender, hooked bill, lengthened wings giving wonderful
power of flight, and by its plundering other sea birds, chiefly Boobies,
of the fish they capture, requiring them to disgorge their meals in mid-
air, which the clever Frigate Bird by its marvellous and graceful flight
catches ere the food reaches the water.

The Frigate Bird is fiuiiished with a capacious pouch in which it can
store phuider not required for immediate wants — hence the name, some-
times, Frigat« PeHcan.

Audubon, the American ornithologist, who found these birds breed-
ing in large numbers in the Gulf of Mexico and on the Florida Quays,
has given the following interesting remarks concerning them ; — " About
the middle of May (a period which to me appeared veiy late for birds
found in so warm a climate as that of the Florida Keys), the Frigate
Pelicans assemble in flocks of from fifty to five hundred pairs or more.
They are seen flying at a. great height over the islands on which they
have bred many previous seasons, coui'ting for houi's together; after
which they retiuTi towards the mangi'oves, alight on them, and at once
begin to repair the old nests or constinict new ones. They pillage each
other's nests of their materials, and make excursions for more to the
nearest quays. They break the diy twigs of trees with ease, passing
swiftly on wing, and snapping them off by a single grasp of tlieir
powerful bill. It is indeed ai beautiful sight to see them when thus
occupied, especially when several are engaged passing and re-passing
with the swiftness of thought over the trees whose tops are blasted ;
their piu'pose appears as if accomplished by magic. It sometimes
happens that the bird accidentally drops a stick while travelling towards
its nest, when, if this should happen over the water, it pliuiges after it
and seizes it with its bill before it has reached the waves."

Some years ago, I believe, the large .species of Frigate Bird used to
breed on Maiden Island, laying in June and again in December. Two
fine eggs belonging to this species, from Maiden Island, grace my collec-
tion, and were nearly lost in a gi-eat huiTicane. Captain Murdock, for-
merly of Messrs. Grice, Sumner & Co., was recruiting labour at Nui (one
of the neighbouring islands) for the Maiden Island Guano Depot, in 1883.

XESTS AA'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. ggi

When, he was on shore, a hmricaue of terrific violence suddenly arose. The
mate, who remained on board in charge of the barque, " Don Diego,"
although short-handed, immediately set sail, bravely clearing the reef, and
put to sea. A terrible night followed ; it blew " great gims," as old shell-
backs say. It was decidedly an awkwai'd and desperate position. There
was the good Captain, an imwilling prisoner among savages, and his ship
perhaps, for aught he knew, on the coral pavements at the bottom of
the Pacific. But judge his delight, when, after tlu'ee days and three
nights of painful suspense, he descried the white sails of his vessel on
the horizon, beating in. Still gi-eater was his joy when he stepped on
board and shook his mate's rough hand again.

Professor Moseley. in his interesting book, " A Naturalist on the
' Challenger,' " observed that on the island of Fernando Noronha, oflE the
Brazilian coast, the Frigate Birds placed their nests well out of harm's
way on the veiy verge of a precipice, which was quite inaccessible. He
looked down and saw the nests, five or six of which were biiilt close
together, almost touching one another, and contained each a single egg.
Date, 1st and '2nd September, 1873. The Frigate Bird was again noticed
amongst a crowd of other species of sea birds on Boatswain Bird Rock,
off Ascension Island, towards the end of the voyage, March to April,
1876.

731. — Fregata ARIEL, Gould. — (659)
LESSER FRIGATE BIRD.

figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 72.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 447.

Previous Vescriftions of Eggs. — *Gould : Birds of Australia (1848) ;
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 500 (1865); Campbell: .Southern
Science Record (1883), and Victorian Naturalist (1889) ;
North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 364 (iS8q) ; Walker : Ibis, p. 259
(1892).

Oeographicnl Dhtrihutinn. — Seas of West, North-west Australia,
Northern Territory, and Queensland ; also tropical parts of the Indian
and Pacific Oceans, ranging west to Madagascar and east to the Society
Islands.

Nei<t. — Somewhat flat on top, composed of herbage and placed upon
the ground, or close thereto, on short vegetation, in companies of from
five to twenty on certain islands in the tropics. Dimensions, about
12 inches in diameter by about 12 inches in height.

Epgs. — Clutch, one ; lengthened oval in form, or slightly more com-
pressed at one end : texture of shell coarse ; surface without gloss :
colour, white, washed slightlv in parts with lime. Dimensions in inches :
(1) 2-6 X 1-64, ,(2) 2-58 x 1-68, (3) 2-55 x 1-6.5, (4) 2-42 x 1-65.

Observations.- — .The Lesser Frigate Bird is stated to be fairly abundant
in the seas washing the tropical parts of Australia, especially in Torres
Strait.

*No dimensions given.

992

A-ESTS A.VD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

By its swift aerial movements and its love for plundering other sea
birds it has well been tenncd a "Falcon of the Sea," and is easily mis-
taken for the other marine marauder — the Great Frigate Bird.

The Lesser Frigate Bird was foimd breeding on Raine Islet, in ToiTes
Strait, by Commander Ince, R.N., dui-ing the sm-veying voyage of H.M.S.
" Fly." His obsei-vations are recorded by Gould.

In his " Notes by a Natiu-alist," Professor Moseley writes respecting
the nesting of the Lesser Frigat« Bird on Raine Islet, 31st August, 1874 :
" Their nests were nearly all confined to a small area, near the cleared
patch already refen-ed to (where two species of Gannets — the Brown
and the Masked — were breeding). Tliey are like those of the Red-legged
Gannet (S. piscator), raised on the bushes, and are a compact, platform-
like mass of twigs and gi-ass, matted togetlier with dung, about eight
inches in diameter. There were no eggs of the birds in the nests, but
mostly fax advanced young, which were covered with frills of a rusty-
colonred down. The old birds soared overhead, and could only be
obtained by being shot ; whereas the Gannets were easily knocked over
on the nests with sticks. The main body of the Frigate Birds remained
during our stay, soaring high up in the air, with their Eagle-like flight,
far above the cloud of other birds (Terns, &c.) beneath."

Mr. J. T. Fox wasi good enough to make some observations of the birds
frequenting Maiden Island for me, and procured skins and eggs of same.
Maiden, which is in the mid-Pacific, and near the reported limits of this
bird's range, is an integral part of the British Dominions, and is leased
for its rich deposits of phosphoric guano by Messrs. Grice, Sumner & Co.,
of Melbourne. Tlie Lesser Frigate Bird always frequents the island,
but is to be found in gi'eater numbers dimng the laying season, March
and April, when they amve in thousands to take up their quarters upon
the islands in the lagoon. During the breeding season the male bird
is very conspicuous with his bi-ight-red gular pouch, which he proudly
distends at times.

An extraordinary habit is possessed by this bird — and not bv any
other kind as far as I am aware — namely, that occasionally when
disturbed it will lift its egg in its claws and ascend into the air.
Mr. Fox assured me of this fact, and stated that on one occasion an
incredulous visitor to the island was scrutinizing from below a biid that
had risen, when by fright or accident it released the hold of its egg,
which fell and smashed upon the spectator, who was then and tliere con-
vinced of the peculiar trait of the bird, and was only too thankful that
the egg was not addled.

Regarding the Lesser Frigate Bird breeding on AdiMc Island, on
the north-west coast, Mr. James Walker, H.M.S. " Penguin," who visited
the locality, 2nd May. 1892, gives the follownng interesting account in
the " rijis " (1892) : — " These fine birds had been noticed while wc were
wading over the flats, soaring high above all the sea fowl, many of them,
indeed, reduced to mere black specks against the blue sky. Extending
for more tlian half a mile along the middle of the i.sland was a naiTOw
strip of open land, almost fiee from tlie usual high gi-ass, and covered
chiefiy with the Ipiinufn. Here the nests of the Frigate Birds were
to be seen in clusters or bunches of from five or six to as many as twenty

.VESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

993

together (very rarely singly), and built directly on tlic ground, of stalks
of grass and I pumnu, small twigs, &c. The average dimensions of eiieh
nest were about one foot in height by a little more in diameter, thoaigh
frequently tlie clusters of old nests, which were evidently used for a
succession of yeaK, fornied masses of very considerable size. As in
the case of the Gaunets and Cormorants, tlie hollow in the nests
was veiy slightly definedj and in each was deposited a single egg,
averaging 2 ;,\ x 1 i^ inches, pure white in colour, very thin-shelled
with only a very slight limy coating. A few of the eggs were newly
laid, and easily recognizable by their delicate and beautiful pink tinge ;
but the great majority were very ' hard set,' and there were a gi-eat
many young birds in the nests. These, when just out of the .sIilII, were
quite naked, like the young Gaimets, which they then gi-eatly resembled ;
when more advanced they were covered with a scanty white down, and
had a conspicuous saddle-shaped band of dark-grey feathers across the
back and scapular region. Nearly all the brooding birds were females,
some of them in quite immature dress ; but among them wtro many
fine old cocks, conspicuous by their deep, grccn-glossed, black plumage
and scarlet throat-pouches. A few stray Gannets, usually of the white
species (S. ciinmrps) had taken up their quarters for incubation among
the Frigate Birds, but were evidently regarded with but little favour
by the legitimate occupants of the ground.

"The tameness, or rather indifi'ereuce, of these birds, especially of
the females, was most sm-prising. As one walked among the nests, the
sitting birds nearest at hand merely stretched out their necks, snapped
their long, slender, hooked bills, and uttered a croak like that of the
White Gannet, but very much more feeble ; while to obtain the egg
it was necessary to push the bird off the nest, when it took wing without
apparent difficulty.

" The birds on the adjoining nests, little more than ann's length
distant, meanwhile took absolutely no notice of the intnider. The
young birds, when of any size, were much more vicious than their
parents, and energetically resisted any attempt to take them off,
croaking and snapping fiercely with their bills."

Mr. Walker's party gathered a large number of the Frigate Birds'
eggs, which, w^hen boiled hard, were by no means bad eating ; the white,
as is usually the case with sea birds' eggs, remained quite transparent
and jelly-like, while the flavour was not in the -least degi'ee rank or
disagreeable.

During his visit to Lacepede Islands, August, 1877, to inspect the
guano deposits there, Mr. L. H. Cogswell, of Messrs. Grice, Sumner & Co.,
obs-^rved, amongst other sea birds, a Frigate Bird breeding there. It
was most probably referable to the species at present under consideration.

63

gQ4 /VESTS A.VD EGGS OF AVSTRAUAN BIRDS.

FAMILY— PHAETH0NTID7E : TROPIC BIRDS.

732. — Phaethon rubricauda, Boddaerb. — (660)
RED-TAILED TROPIC BIRD.

Figure. — Gould ; Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 73.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 451.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould ; Birds of Australia {1S48) ,
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. S02 ("865) ; Crowfoot (Metcalfe) :
Ibis, p. 268 (1885); BuUer : "Birds of New Zealand, vol. ii.,
p. 1S8 (1888); North: .'\ustn. Mus. Cat., p. 362 and app.,
pi. 19, fig. I (18S9).

Geo(jraf>hic(d Dtxtrihution. — Seas of West and North-west Australia,
Northern Territory. Queensland, and New South Wales ; also New
Zealand and the tropical and sub-tropical portions of the Pacific and
Indian Oceans.

Ne.^t. — The bare floor of the ledge of a> cliff., a hole under a shelving
rock, and sometimes on tlie ground under a tree or bush bordering the
beach.

Eggs. — Clutch, on© usually ; true oval iu shape ; texture of shell
coarse : .surface without gloss ; colour, pinkish-buff, mottled and marked
(like a Falcon's) over the whole surface with pinlcish or purplish-red.
Dimensions in inches : (1) 2-92 x 1-96, (2) 2-8 x 1-95, (3) 2-8 x 1-9.
(Plate 26.)

Observations. — This singular sea-bird, with its general plumage
white, suffused with a beautiful roseate tinge, and two lengthened
central tail feathers of deep rich red (hence the name. Red-tailed),
frequents tropical seas. However, it has been found as far south on
the eastern coast of Australia as New South Wales, and on the west
coast down to the district of Champion Bay.

Amongst sailors it is known as the Boatswain Bird, and often hovers
round a ship at sea, occasionally alighting on the rigging.

Gould possessed eggs from both Norfolk Island, off the eastern coast
of Australia, and Raine Islet, in Ton-es Strait.

Macgillivray, in communicating with Gould, wrote : " Tliis Tropic
Bird was found by us on Raine's Islet, where, dtiring the month of
June, about a dozen were procured. Upon one occasion, three were
observed performing sweeping flights over and about the island, and
soon afterwards one of thrm alighted ; keeping my eye upon the spot,
I ran up and found a male bird in a hole under the low shelving margin
of the island bordering the beach, and succeeded in capturing it after
a .short scuffle, during which it snapped at me with its beak and uttered
a loud, harsh, and oft repeated croak. It makes no nest, but deposits

A£srs AXD i:ggs or austhalian bikds. gg^

its two eggs on the bare floor of the hole, and both sexes assist in the
task of incubation. It usually returns from sea about noon, soaring
high in the air, and wheeling round in circles before alighting."

Mr. F. M. Nobbs, t-o whom I was indebted for several splendid
specimens of these eggs, states that on Norfolk Island, where he lived
ior the greater part of his life, the Tropic Bird lays one cg'g. This
statement is at variance with MacgilUvray's, who says that two are the
complement.

This bird is particularly attached to its eggs or young, and in
defending them will allow itself to be caught. The eggs from Norfolk
Island were dated 7th December, 1886 ; other specimens were collected
in November.

From the other side of the Continent Mr. G, K. Beddoes writes :
" Found Tropic Bird nesting on Pelsarl Island (Abrolhos) ; month,
Febniary ; two eggs, both hard set.

" Following February two nests same kind were taken on Rat
Island ; two eggs in each. I could not rescue the eggs, not being the
finder."

733. — Phaethon lepturus, Daubin.
r. c(\i\(li(lu>:, Temniinck.

WHITE-TAILED TROPIC BIRD.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 457.

Previous Descriftion of Eggs. — Legge : Birds of Ceylon, p. 11 75
(1880).

Ge.nt/rnphical Dii-frihution. — The coasts of West and North-west
Australia, Northern Tenitoiy, Queensland, and New South Wales ;
also tropical and sub-tropical seas of the world (except the east coast
of Nortli America).

Nest. — A hole or hollow of a rock or tree stump.

Egg.i. — Clutch, one; resembles that of P. americanus, being oval
in form, or more compressed towards one end ; tcxtiu'e of shell somewhat
coarse; surface has faint trace of gloss; colour, light stony- buff, finely
freckled all over (thickest on the apex) with purplish-brown. Dimensions
in inches: 2-08 x 1-52 (Legge); 2-04 x 1-48 (Nehrkorn).

Observations. — Although the White-tailed Tropic Bird is usually
restricted to tropical waters, in Australia it has been observed as far
south as Hovitman's Abrolhos, on the west coast, while on the east
coast an immature specimen was blown ashore at Botany Bay (New
South Wales) during February, 1898, after an occurrence of easterly
gales.

Concerning the White-tailed, or Yellow-billed, Tropic Bird, Colonel
Legge records : " The nearest nesting place of this species to Ceylon

9q6

XESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

is probably to be found in the Seychelles Group. Here, Mr. E. Newton
found a nest on Mahe, in January, and it was situated in the hole of
a dead stump of a ' capucin,' about fifteen feet from the ground, and
contained a young bird, the produce of a single egg which this species
always lays. At Ascension, Mr. Gill, as recorded by Mr. Penrose,
found it breeding on Boatswain Bird Island, so called from the large
number of Tropic Birds which always nest there. It was scarcer than
the large barred species, P. cethereiis, and was nesting in holes on the
side of the island. Like its congeners, it is very tame when breeding,
allowing itself to be pulled out of its nest, but biting vigorously
notwithstanding."

Professor Moseley, in his fascinating book, " A Natm-alist on the
' Challenger,' " graphically describes the breeding home of the White-
tailed Tropic Bird, as well as those of several other species of Australian
sea-birds, on far away Ascension Island. Boatswain Bird Island is a
high rock separated from the mainland by a nan-ow channel. The sides
of the rock are precipitous, but some of the sailors managed to climb
up and fix a rope at the summit, so that it hung down the cliff. The
face of the cliff was covered with guano, hanging everywhere upon it
in large projecting masses of stalactite-like fonnation. The members of
the nesting party clambered up the cliff by means of the rope, being
half blinded and choked by the g^iano dust on the way. In holes on the
side of the cliff, biuTowed in the accumulated guano, were nests of two
kinds of Tropic Birds (P. lepturus and cethenux).

Although there has been no authenticated record of a third species
of Tropic Bird occuiTing in Australian waters, I believe the largest
White-tailed species, P. (Fihereux. occasionally visits the north-east
coast. Some years ago Mr. E. L. Layard, when British Consul at
Noumea, New Caledonia, kindly sent me three eggs of a Tropic Bird
marked " ronrlidiix? " collected on Bampton Shoals. Obviously, by
their large size, these eggs are not those of canditlux /'now Jepturux),
nor by their colouration are the}' rtihriraiuln ; therefore, they are most
probably referable to P. retJiemis: of Linnreus.

The eggs may be thus described: — Oval in shape, or move or less
pointed at one end ; texture of shell coarse ; surface without gloss ;
colour, warm-white, moderately marked with roundish blotches and
spots of dark pui-plish-brown. Dimensions in inches: (1) 2-75 x 1-96,
(2) 2-7 X 1-8,3, (3) 2-69 X 1-75.

The geographical distribution of P. ntlirren^ is the tropical portions
of the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.

NESTS AXD LOGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

FAMILY— PELECANID.IS : PELICANS.

yy;

734. -Pelecancs conspicillatus, Tfiuiiunck. — ((jjl)
PELICAN.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, ful., vol. vii., pi. 74.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. x.\vi., p. 4S3.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — (jould : Birds of Australia (1848),
also Handbook, vol. li., p. 4S7 (1S65) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 36S (1889) ; Le Souef ; Ibis, p. 423 (1S95).

Geographical Distribution. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania;
also New Guinea.

i\'««<. — Almost flat and about 18 incliLS across; roughly constructed
of dry herbage, &c., in some instances the nest is merel)' a sUght
hollow scraped in the ground ; placed in a small rookery on the highest
part of small islands at sea or in a lake.

Eyys. — Clutch, two to three ; elliptical in shape ; textiu'e of shell
coarse ; suiiace glossy ; colour, white, with a thick coating (sometimes
smooth, in other instances rough) of lime. Dimensions in inches of
a proper clutch : (1) 3-7 x 2'33, (2) 3'65 x 2-35 ; of a smaller pair :
(1) 3-4 X 2-15, (2) 3-25 X 2-23.

Observations. — The Pelican is an important bird. This large repre-
sentative of the genus, with its seemingly vmwieldy bill and pouch, needs
no description, save to say that it has been declared by competent
judges, by reason of its black and white dress, to be the most handsome
of the six or seven species of Pelicans found in the world.

A company of these fine birds, flying high in a wedge-shaped phalanx,
is a fine sight. " A camp of fishennen on Lake Charm, Victoria, skin
and clean cat-fish before sending them to market. They do so at the
water's edge. Coming within twenty yards of them is a flock of about
400 Pelicans, waiting for the heads and offal. The fishermen carry
the offal in a basket about twenty yards along the shore, and throw it
out. Then the scramble commences, and the l>asketful disappears in
the twinkling of an eye. Pretty Marsh Terns hover overhead, and
when the big birds have eaten the large parts, they dart down for the
tit-bits. " Such is a Pelican pictm-c kindly sent me by Mr. G. H.
Morton, J. P., when these birds were gathered during the recent
droughty season (1897) not far from his home.

Dimng the same season (October), Mr. .1. W. Mellor, of Adelaide,
witnessed a similar scene on Lake Albert. Captain Sturt, the explorer,
saw the channel of a river seventy or eighty yards broad crowded with.

998

.VESTS AA'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIA A' BIRDS.

Pelicans, while at another time the birds were in siich numbers on the
Darling tliat the sight was described as being quite dazzling to behold.

The Pelican is fovuid in all parts of Australia and the neighbouiiug
islands. Tlie last example I liappened to notice I saw from a railway
carriage. It was solitary, standing in a sheltered swamp just outside
the railway fence, as the I\Iclbom'ne-Sydney express rushed past.

Pelicans haunt the shallows and islets of the sea, as welt as inland
waters. A Pelican rookery existed on a rocky islet oS the north-west
coast of Tasmania, which has been visited by iield naturalists of late
years. Owing to that visiting the birds have deserted the place, so
I hear. I need not mention who was there last, but the following is
Mr. Du.dley Le Souef's accoiuxt : — "About a dozen pair,? of these birds
nested on Penguin Rocks, on a small patch of clear ground, just above
high-water mark, and suiTouuded with high tussocky grass. The nests
were very simple — a few sticks and bits of grass put together, and
almost level with the ground. There were one or two eggs or yoimg
birds in the nests, the latter being of various ages, from three weeks old
downwards. One little one, apparently about three days old, managed,
in the absence of its parents, to crawl from its rightful nest into that
of its neighbour, which contained a bird about three weeks old. The elder
bird immediately commenced vigorously pecking the little stranger, and
would soon have killed it had the latter not been removed. The young
had no down on, and their skin was bare, tlie regular lines of gi-owth
where the young feathers were appearmg were plainly discernible.
When they crawl they appear to stick their beaks into the soft soil,
and thus jKill themselves along, as they have not j)ower to stand up
and walk.

Mr. E. D. v^tkiuson, C.E., to whom I was first indebted for Pelicans'
eggs from this locality, said that the birds he robbed on the 8th October
laid again, but on a different island. The atmosphere surrounding the
nesting places was decidedly " strong " from the presence of stale
fish, &c.

During our trip to the Furneaux (Jroup, on the Tasmaniau side of
Bass Strait, we learnt that Pehcans were breeding on Sentinel Island,
and that there was a large rookery on Little Green Island, between Dog
and Flinders Islands. Formerly there used to be a large rookery on
Pelican Island, Franklin Sound, which was destroyed uy removing the
guano deposits. Another rookery used to exist on Pascoe Island, but
the depasturing of sheep disturbed the birds and drove them away.

The late Mr. Thomas M. Turner (H.M. Customs), when stationed
at Port Albert in the early days, took young Pelicans on St. Margaret's
Island, Shallow Inlet. Pelican Island, Wcstemport, was also a nesting
place in the " sixties." Mr. Wilham Smith writes : " On this islet, in
March, 1864, Mr. Peters, a collector of natural history subjects, then
residing at Qucensfen-y, in the same locality, and myself landed, and
captured forty young Pelicans, fully fledged, but unable to fly. These
were sent to the Botanical Gardens, Melbourne. Great numbers of
young birds in all stages of growth, and also eggs in nests, were present
on the islet."

^ESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. ggy

lu " Thcj Argus," during 181)3, reference was made to a pathetic ballad
by Mrs. Foott, ot Queensland, entitled " Where the Pelican Builds Her
Nest." This gave rise to interesting correspondence, exploding an
error, apparently popular in parts of Queensland, that the Pelican only
builds " in the mysterious di'ought-stricken solitudes of the ' Never-
Never ' country, ' and proving (as was well known to ornithologists)
that the Pelican breeds by the sea as well as in the interior, or wher-
ever the circiuustances are favourable for food, &c.

Mr. John Phelps wrote : " I saw nests on the islands in the Bool-
aboolka and Ratcatcher Lakes, fifty miles east of Menindie, Darling
River, on Tolamo and Albemarle stations.

'' Boolaboolka (or Boolo Boolka) is a native name, literally meaning
' Pelican Lake.' It was on an island in that lake that I first saw a
Pelican's nest in 1879. At that time the yoiuig birds were suffering
from a parasite (similar to a sheep tick, but smaller), wliich attached
itself to the inside of the pouch and throat. I have caught young birds
(half-gi'own) on the nest, and opened the beak, when the ticks could be
seen adhering to the throat." Pelicans were breeding in the Boola-
boolka in the autumn of 1894.

Another correspondent wrote : " Any time in Ihc season on Coongy
station. Cooper's Creek, South AustraUa, on a small low island on the
Coongy Lakes, hundreds of Pelicans are to be foimd hatching their
young. . . . The eggs are so rank that even the blacks will not
eat them, although they are very fond of the yovmg bii'ds, and obtain
great numbers of them just before they are fully fledged."

Mr. B. H. Purcell stated that the natives (Walliunbooroo tribe) of
Northern Temtoiy call the Pehcan " Walliunberry,' and that a, neigh-
bouring tribe (Worku) call it " Wallumbooi-oo," bvit Mr. Piu'cell
diminishes the value of his otherwise interesting contribution by stating
that the Pehcan lays up to a dozen eggs. The maximiuu is only three.

PeUcans usually lay during September, October, and November, but
they occasionally breed in autumn. They did so on Pelican Rock,
Westcniport, 1864, and at Boolaboolka, River Darling, 1894 ; and I am
informed that lumch-eds were breecUng in April on Turtle Island,
between Lacepede Islands and Cossack, West Australia. ^

I shall conclude my somewhat scattered obseivations on the Pelican
by giving a reahstic account of an outing " After PeUcans' Eggs," kindly
wi-itten for me by Mr. John W. Mellor, an enthusiastic collector in
South Australia : " My brother and I left Adelaide on the 18th Sep-
tember, 1894, en route for the Coorong. (The Coorong is an arm of
the sea half-a-mile to a mile wide, separated from the ocean by a
narrow strip of sandliills running parallel with the coast line for about
loo miles.) We took train to Lake Alexandiina, and then boarded a
steamer and crossed over to the other side. Here we got into pos-
session of a small boat, and neither of us being used to rowing, we
found it rather heavy work in pulling, but in this way we proceeded up
Lake Albert and disembarked at ' Narnmg ' station, about six miles
down the lake. From this point we were obliged to take ' sliank's
pony,' and a nice httle walk we had of about 100 miles, which took a
considerable time to accomphsh, as we had to carry our knapsacks and

jOO) NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

everything rcquiied. Ou reacliiiig the locahty iu which the birds are
said to breed, we found that they were located ou a small island about
a mile from the shore, and access to which was impossible except by
boat. We were non-plussed ; we tried to get a boat from the blacks,
but they had none, and we were told that the nearest boat that they
knew of was owned by a small lishermau and boiuidary rider, who lived
about ten miles further on, so that to gain this we should have to walk
there, borrow the boat, and then come back to the place, after wluch
we should have to return the boat and come back on foot again — and
all this for only the cliance of seeing or getting auythiug, was not at
all encom'aging. My brother wanted to return, but I, being more
enthusiastic and also more experienced in roughing it, would not hear
of this, and consequently pushed ou, determined ' to do or die.' We
reached the tUlapidated abode of the fisherman on the morning of the
last day of the month, but what was our disappointment to find that
he had set out in the early morn boimdai-y riding, and would not return
till late that night. So there was nothing to do but stay here all day,
as his ' missus,' who was a black, could not give us the boat, but told us
we had better ' wait till the Boss came home.' He did not return till
late that night, and we had to make the best of it until morning by
stretching ourselves out, both wrapped up in a ' bluey,' so you may
imagine our feelings. But we were up pretty early next morning from
a rather restless night, and found our ' host ' was up before us and left
for the beach. We then had to chase him. After some conversation
on the boat subject, we learned that he had only got a small canoe,
and that it was uuseaworthy, but if we liked to risk our lives we could
have the loan of it. There was nothing for it but to run the risk, and
as it was getting late and we were pushed for time, we arranged to take
a black man and borrow a horse and cart from the fishennan. In this
way we reached the point oil the shore where we intended to launch
our little sluff. (In these regions, and at tliis time of the year, the
wind generally changes round from the land at about 1 o'clock p.m.
and blows a stiff gale from the seaward.) With all speed our flat-
bottom skiff was placed in the water, but it was found that two wovdd
be the utmost of its carrying powers, as it was only eight inches deep.
Accordingly I took the black man and set off for the island, leaving
my brother behind to look after the horse and cart. On arriving near
the island, I could see the Pelicans sitting about on a bare piece of
ground about the middle of the island ; also a few Black Swans and
White-breasted Connorants, but it was not luitil I had landed that
I could see their eggs. Tlie birds rose in a body, and after circling
about for a minute or two, went dovra into the water and started
fishing. Tiie island was somewhat elevated in the centre, and the birds
had taken possession of a bare patch, running from almost the water's
edge to the summit, with an aspect so that the sun would .shine on them
from early morning to evening. The extent of their nesting grounds
was not very gi-eat, only about twelve or foiu-tecn yards broad and about
eigliteen or twenty yards up the incline. Incubation was far advanced
in some eggs, and in others it was early iu the season, for some of the
young were out of the shell several days, while others had only just

NESTS AND EGGS 01- AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. loOI

tliought about nesting. A curious tiling about the nesting plaee was
tlio birds seemed to have commenced to hiy at the lower end of the
ground, and a-s others came, fchey had to take theii* places a little higher
up the slope, and so on to the top, for at the lower end the yoimg birds
were large, and they gradually became smaller higher up, followed by
eggs far advanced in incubation, which gradually became quite fresh
at the top end, and then again above this there were a few fresh
serat<-hes in the sandy gi-oimd, showing that a few birds still intended
to lay within a day or two. There must liave been from IjO to 200
nests, or apologies for nests, situated from about three to four feet
apart, apparently the sitting birds being just out of each other's reach.
The eggs varied in size considerably, some being very much longer than
others, and some veiy short and stumpy. The stench was very im-
pleasaut, tiie weather for weeks had been hot, and the old birds had
carried fish for their yomig in excess of the demand, and it lay about
putrefying in the sun.

" But this was reduced to a considerable extent by the Crows, wliich
settled evei-y now and then and flew off with some of the ' delightful '
booty. I also saw several nests of the Black Swan amongst the salt-
bush growing on the island. The nests contained from three to six
eggs of the usual size and coloiuing. The White-breasted Cormorant
had also just commenced to incubate, for some of their nests were
placed here and there amongst and near the Pelicans' abode. The
weather looked threatening, and I could see a change was not far off.
The black also became uneasy, and was anxious to return to terra
firma of the mainland. So after procuring a few sets we started for
the shore, but only jvist in time, for we had barely reached shelter when
the change came, and the bosom of the water was changed into ripples,
then from ripples to rough waves.

'■ We reloaded the dray with the boat as soon as possible, and as the
black man had led the horse down with us, we sent him back in hke
fashion, while we retraced our steps to the first shelter we could get,
which was about three or four miles along our homeward jomney. We
were late in getting along, and it was some time after dark when we
arrived at the place, quite tired out with having such an anxious day,
and also having little or no sleep the night before. But such are
among the joys of a field naturalist."

I002 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ORDER -PYQOPODBS: DIVINQ = BIRDS.

FAMILY— PODIClPEDIDyE : GllEBES.

735. PODICIPES NOV.E HULLANDl^, StcplieUS. (667)

BLACK-THROATED GREBE.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 8i.

Reference.— C2.\. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 519.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — *Gould : Birds of Australia (1848),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 514 (1865); Campbell: Southern
Science Record (1SS3) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 34S (1889).

Geograithical Distribution.— AvLsiva.]ia. in general and Tasmania;
also New Guinea and Java; New Caledonia.

Jest. — A floating structui-e, composed usually of aquatic weeds piled
up in rounded form, the top being almost level with the siuface of the
water (in. some instances the eggs are in the water), and stranded among
rushes or submerged fallen trees, &c., or anywhere in flooded country.
Soiiietimes these nests are placed near or amongst those of the large
Tippet Grebe.

Efjgt. — Clutch, four to six usually, seven to eight rarely; elliptical
in shape ; textm-e of shell fine ; surface glossy ; coloiu', a thin, dull
white coating of lime obscures a pale bluish-white shell, and becomes
darker or of a shiny raw sienna shade as incubation proceeds. Dimen-
sions in inches of a proper clutch: (1) 1-48 x TO, (2) 1-44 x TO,
(3) 1-4 X 1-03, (4) 1-34 X 1-03.

Observations. — The little. Black-throated Grebe may be found in
swamps and lagoons throughout the Continent and Tasmania, and is
probably the most common of the three species of Australian Podicipes,
as the birds are technically termed.

The bird. like the Hoaiy -headed Grebe, is likewise famiUarly known
as a " dabchick, " and, although almost wingless, it is astonishing how
quickly the bird can get vindcr water, and show a " clean pair of heels '
to the pot-hunter the instant he pulls the trigger.

In the " Catalogue " of the Australian Museum, Mr. North states
tliat, " while sitting, the female covers herself over with the outer
poitions of the nest, her head and neck alone being visible ; when
leaving the nest she covers her eggs over and dives at once, reappearing
about ten or fifteen yards away. During 1 873 many nests of this species
were procured in a single afternoon from the Albert Park L:tke, near
Mclbovu-ne."

Mr. Harry Barnard (Queensland) has watched the Black-throated
Grebe concealing its eggs in the manner just described Iw'forc darting
into the water.

*No dimensions given.

.VESTS AND EGGS 01- AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. lOOj

The following is another Queensland note, written by Mr. Hermanu
Lau : — " The little Grebe, like the Swau, makes its nest rest on the bed
of a shallow ditch or lagoon. It is sometimes 2^ feet in thickness, its
materials comprising the long, narrow leaves of water plants, lined with
rootlets of the same. At night time the bird sits on its five eggs, but
while it is day, and the sxm shining, it covers the eggs with water weeds,
the surface of the water being level with the brim of the nest, which,
as a whole, forms the figiu-e of a cone. Once I accidentally shot a
mother bird, and found, when dead, she had under each wing a yoimg
one, and when I waded back to the nest foimd one egg. Breaking the
egg, discovered a yoimg one, wliich opened its beak and was quite
lively. Only one brood is reared. Yandilla, October, 1877."

When out in the back-water lagoons of the Murray River, alter
Marsh Tems' eggs, 26th November, 1893, Mr. G. H. Morton found
several nests of the httle Black-throated Grebe among a breeding colony
of the Terns. The Grebes' nests were built principally of black,
decayed stalks of water plants, and were larger in size than those of
the Teni.^, the eggs being invariably covered with the same material.
The Grebes chd not appear to be sitting; in fact, none of these birds
were noticeable about. Probably they had been scared away by
Mr. Morton's approach. But the Terns kept to their posts.

Breeding months are September to January or Februaiy. Mr. A.
Watson infoiins me that on one occasion in Gippslaud he found eight
eggs in a nest of the Black-throated Grebe.

The food of Grebes consists chiefly of small fish, mollusca, and
insects of various kinds. Tlie Black-thi'oated Grebe, as its name indi-
cates, may be distinguished from the Hoary-headed Grebe, wliich it
resembles in size and general coloui', by having its throat and sides
of the face black. There is also a conspicuous mark of deep-chestnut,
beginning beliind each eye and extending down the sides of the neck.

The yoiuig in down is whitish on the under parts, while the upper
siuface is striped alternately black and lightish-brown.

During the Calvert Expedition this bird was noted for West Aus-
tralia for the first time. Large numbers of them were seen near Lake
Way, and at the depot Mr. L. A. Wells killed one on firing into a flock
of Teal. These Grebes were also found at many of the swamps formed
by the heavy rains near the Fitzroy River.

736. — PoDiciPES POLiocEPHALUS, Jaixliue and Selby. — (666)
P. nestor, Gould.

HOARY-HEADED GREBE.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 82.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 522.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — *Gould : Birds of Australia (1S4S),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 512 (1865) ; Campbell : Southern
Science Record (1S83) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 347 (1S89).

Geo(ji-aj)hical Distribution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, South, West, and North-west Australia, and Tasmania.

*No dimensions given.

I004 A'ESrS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Neat. — Similar to that of P. novce Iiollandia, somewhat flat, and
composed of a floating mass of aquatic weeds submerged within an inch oi
two of the top of the water of swamps, &c.

E(/ys. — Clutch, four to five, occasionally six; elliptical in shape;
textiu'e of shell fine ; surface glossy, and frequently rough with limy
nodules; colovu', a thin, dull white coating obsciu-es a gi-eenish-white
shell. As is usually the case with Grebes' eggs, they become dajker
and more polished as incubation proceeds. Dimensions in inches :
(1) 1-59 X 1-13, (2) 1-58 X 1-12, (3) 1-57 x Ml.

Observations. — The Hoary-headed Grebe, commonly called Dabchick,
is a much smaller bird than the Tippet or Crested Grebe, being only
9 or 10 inches in total length, including 1 inch for the length of its
bill. Its plumage is brownish above, and beautiful silvcry-gi'ey beneath,
wliile its head is busliy and black, curiously ornamented wth lengthened
hair-like white plumes, hence the bird's vernacular name. Hoary-headed.

Like the frill on the large Tippet Grebe, the long haii--like plumes
which adorn the face of tliis species are only domied diuing tlie breeding
time. When family responsibihties are over for the season, the head
becomes browner, and the wliite plumes disappear.

Grebes usually prefer quiet inland waters, but Mr. Tom Carter,
Western Australia, tells me on one occasion, when coasting in a boat,
a Hoary-headed Grebe was secured at sea. The bird appeared injured
in some way, and was caught by one of his black boys diving after it.
The nearest fresh-water pool, Mr. Carter reckoned, was a hundred miles
distant. A distressing drought had been existing in the district for
abovit two years and a half, which may have accounted for the Httle
Grebe being found at sea. However, this bird has been found still further
at sea, near the same region. Mr. G. K. Beddoes, writing from the
Abrolhos Islands, which are about fifty miles oif the coast, states :
" Last winter (1897) there have been a great many small Water Hens
round the islands, something like the Dabchick. a little dark bird,
looking when swimming like a small duck, and a demon to dive. They
are quite strangers to us as far as I am aware. I have not seen any
for the past month, and think they must have cleared out again."

Tlie breeding months for this species are from October to Januai-y.

737. — PoDiciPEs CRISTATUS, Linueeus. — (665)
TIPPET GREBE.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. So.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 544.

Previous Descriplions of Eggs. — Potts : Trans. New Zealand Inst.,

vol. ii., p. 74 (1870) ; Travers : Trans. New Zealand Inst., vol.

iii., p. 113 (1S71) ; Buller : Birds of New Zealand (1S73), vol. ii.,

p. 286 (18S8); I.ucas: Victorian Naturalist (1884); North:

.\ustn. Mus. Cat., p. 347 (1S89); and others.

Gein/ifipliiral Disiritnti ion. — Australia in general and Ta.'iniania:
also New Zealand, Africa, Asia, Central and Rotitlurn Europe.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1005

.V(•^■^ — -Composed of aquatic weeds, and stranded so tliat the top
is nearly level mth the surface of the water, amongst rashes, &c.,
usually in large lagoons. Occasionally eight or ten nests may bo found
near each other.

Egga. — Clutch, five to seven ; elliptic-ally inclined in .shape ; texture
of shell somewhat fine ; colour, a dull, white, limy coating obsciu-es a
greenish-wliite shell. The outside covering, however, soon becomes
stained, and as incubation proceeds goes through various shades of
polished, vellowish-browii to very dark olive-brown. Dimensions in
inches of odd pairs: A (1) 2-06 x 1-46, (T) 205 x 1-4; B (1) 2-02 x 1-36,
(2) 2-01 X 1-37.

Ohservatiom. — The Tippet Grebe, which is of strikingly odd appear-
ance, is found in localities suitable to its mode of li\aug throughout
Australia. It is also foimd in Tasmania and New Zealand, and is
identical with the great Crested Grebe of Europe. An ornithological
conundrum — How has this peculiar species, devoid of almost any flying
power, found its way to the antipodes? The Ven. Canon Tristram
collected an adult male in the Sea of Galilee.

The ornamental frill, or collarette, from which the bird derives its
name, is only worn during the breeding season, and by both sexes.
The frill is black on the outer edge, and rich chestnut-colour in the
centre, gradually passing into the buffy-white of the face. The rest of
the plumage may be described as: — Upper surface, dark-brown; under
stu'face, silvery-white. It is a large bird, measuring about 24 inches in
length, including a straight and sharply-pointed bill 2| inches. Tlic feet
are ciu'iously shaped, by reason of the flattened, lobated toes, Tlaese
birds are rare divers, and are occasionally caught in fishermen's nets.

Although usually an inland bird, large flocks of Tippet Grebes are
sometimes seen On the w^aters of Port Phillip. Occasionally I have
noticed odd paii's together with Hoary -headed Grebes gracefully riding
the waves near the shipping in Hobson's Bay.

The late Mr. T. H. Potts, who was a good field naturalist, and a
very descriptive writer, observed that in New Zealand the Tippet Grebe
swims low in the water, " with a certain air of demni-e gi-avitv, " and
that during incubation it maintains an upright posture, holding its long
neck erect, which at a distance resembles a stick more than anything
living.

Mr. W. T. L. Travers also enjoyed favourable opportunities of
observing the habits of this great Grebe in New Zealand. According
to the testimony of both Mr. Potts and Mr. Travers, the Grebe in that
country only lays three eggs. In Australia the clutch varies from five
to seven eggs. Mr. Travers states : — " Both male and female Grebes
assist in the labour of incubation, although I believe the chief pai't
devolves vipon the female, and that she is only relieved by her partner
for the pui-pose of enabling her to feed. Before the actual work of
incubation commences, the eggs are usually covered with pond weed
during the absence of the birds from the nest, but afterwards the nest
is seldom, if ever, left by both birds, except under unusual circumstances.

lOoG NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

" The New Zealand bird, as might be expected by its more recent
contact with civilised man, is far less shy than the European one, and
easily discriminates between persons who may be dangerous and those
who are not. Tlie children of my manager frequently visit the nests
diuing the progress of incubation, and as they have never injiu'ed the
nests or eggs, or intei-fercd mischievously with the birds themselves,
they are allowed to approach quite close without the latter thinking it
necessary to quit the nest. When they do so, they glide into the water
with a quick but stealthy motion, diving at once, and rising at a con-
siderable distance from the nest.

" Tlie eggs do not appear to suffer from immersion in the water,
even for a considerable time, for on one occasion three eggs, which by
some means had been thrown out of the nest, and had sunk below to
a depth of several feet, and which must have been immersed in the
water for twenty-four hours at least, were replaced by one of the
childi'cn, and the bird having sat upon them, two out of the three
prodviccd chicks. When the water of the lake is rising, in consequence
of heavy rain, the birds are seen busily engaged in procuring material
and building up the ne.st, so as to raise the eggs above the reach of the
flood. Tlie added material is afterwards spread out after the water
subsides ; but on some rare occasions the rise of the lake has been so
great and so rapid that the birds have been imable to meet it, and the
eggs have become addled. In such cases no chicks have been produced
that season.

" The young birds are of a greyish-green colour, striped with black
(dark-brown), and, particularly when of small sizes, are not easily
detected whilst floating on the water. They take to the water imme-
diately after being excluded from the shell, and both parents exhibit
the gi-eatost solicitude in tending and feeding them. When fatigued,
they are canied on the back of the old birds, taking their station
immediately behind the insertion of the wings, for which ijurposc the
parent bird immerses itself deeper than usual in the water."

Both male and female aid in the construction of the nest. Usual
breeding months, November to December. Amongst my notes there is
a record of a nest of the Tippet Grebe having been observed during the
season of 1887 on Lake Boort, Victoria, which contained ten eggs —
possibly the combined clutches of two females.

VESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

ORDER IMPENNE5: PENGUINS.

1007

738. — Catai'.rhactes chrysocome, Forstcr. — (668)
CRESTED PENGUIN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 83.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvi., p. 635.

Previous Deicri^tions of Eggs. — Buller : Birds of New Zealand (1873),
vol. ii., p. 2g3 (18S8) ; Verrill : Trans. Connect Ac, vol. ix.,
p 458 (1895): Hall: Ibis, p. 32 (:goo).

Geograjjhical Distribution. — Coasts of New South Wales, Victoria,
South and West Australia and Tasmania ; also New Zealand and islands
to the south, TeiTa del Fuego, Falkland Islands, South Georgia, Tristan
da Cunhn, Cape of Good Hope, Prince Edward I.sland, Marion Island,
Crozet Islands, Kerguelen's Land, and St. Paul's Island.

Nest. — Sometimes trampled tiissock or collected shingle, but usually
the bare gi-ound or rock.

Eggs. — Clutch, two; roimd in form, more compressed at one end;
textiu-e of shell coarse ; surface without gloss ; colom-, bluish or greenish-
white, with hard coating of lime and occasionally lime nodules. Dimen-
sions in inches of two proper clutches: A (1st egg) 2-35 x 1'9, (2nd eg^
2-.56 X 1-98 ; B (1st egg) 2-49 x 1-85, (2nd egg) 2-55 x 1-92.

Observations. — -Tlie true homes of this handsome yellow-crested
Penguin are the desolate islands of the Southern Ocean, such as
Macquarie Island, which it shares with the multittides of Xing and
Royal Penguins, Kerguelen's Land, South Georgia, and other places.

However, a few individuals occasionally reach the Tasmanian and
southern coast of AustrEiIia. Tliere are several skins of the Crested
Peng^iin in the Hobart Museum which were taken in Tasmania. During
the expedition of the Field Natm-alists' Club of Victoria to Bass Strait,
1887. a Crested Penguin was captured alive among the rocks on King
Island. I have i-ecorded its occurrence in Western Australia, where
one was caught close to Hamelin Harbour, near Cape Leeuwin.

The birds are called Rock Hoppers because of .their manner of
hopping from rock to rock, as if their legs were tied together. The
description of a bird is: Head, neck, back, and sides, black; over each
eye is a stripe of pale yellow feathers, which are lengthened into a crest
behind (hence the name crested) ; under surface silverv-white ; an
imposing creatiu-c, standing about 2 feet 3 inches high.

A fine pair of eggs in my collection of the Crested Penguin is
from Macquarie Island, where the bird is locallv known as the Victoria
Penguin, and where these birds commence to arrive in crowds about the
beginning of November. Some eggs are laid by the middle of that

IOo8 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

mouth. The nesting places are amongst the tumbled-dowu bouldi#is,
tlio pair of eggs being deposited on the bare ground or rock. It is
remarkable that the first egg laid should be smaller than the other.
The old birds take their- 3'oimg away in March, the former returning
to moult in May, and finally leaving about the middle of June. It
may not be generally known that a Penguin takes exactly 28 days
to moult.

In the " Transactions of the Connecticut Academy " (U.S.A.), 1895,
Mr. G. E. Verrill quotes a note of Mr, George Comer, who spent a season
on tJio islands of Goiigh, Kerg-uelen, and South Georgia, and who states
the Rock Hopper Penguins ( E. rhri/sorome ) have dark-yellow beaks, top
of feet white, bottom black, pupil of eye dark, with red rim ; topknots
or crest dull-yellow, mixed with a few black feathers. They lay two
eggs, the first cue smaller than the other, and slightly tinted green.
When these are taken the birds will lay again. They often were
stained with green, so this is apparently not due to herbage, as there is
none in the cave, and the birds would not have to pass over any in
entering or leaving it for the sea. One most ciuious fact was that in
no cas3 did we find two eggs from one nest coiTespond in size or form."

Sir Wyville Thomson, in the " Voyage of the ' Challenger,' " writes :
" Beyond the garden the tussock grass ( Sjynriinn arundinfirea) of the
Tristan group fonns a dense jungle. The root-clumps, or ' tussocks,'
are two or three feet in width and about a foot high, and the spaces
between jthem one or two feet wide. The tuft of thick gra.ss stems
(seven or eight feet in height) rises strong and straight for a yard or
so, and then the culms sep:irate from one another and mingle with those
of the neighbouring tussocks. This makes a bush very difficult to make
one's way through, for the heads of gi'ass are closely entangled together
on a level with the face and chest. In tliis scrub one of the Crested
Penguins, probably Eii(hi[itfi< cJiri/sdraine, called by the natives in
common with other species of the genus Eii/7i/ptes ' Rock Hoppers,' has
(stablished a rookci-y. From ai great distance, even so far as the hut
on the ship, one could hear an incessant noise, like the barking of a
myriad of dogs in all possible keys, and as we came near the place bands
of Pcngfuins were seen constantly going and returning between the
rookei-y and the sea. All at once, out at sea, a. himdred yards or so
from the .shore, the water is seen in motion, a, dark-red beak and some-
times a pair of eyes appearing now and then for a moment above the
smface. The moving water approaches the shore in a wrd?e-sha])e. and
with great rapidity a band of perhaps thiTe or four Imndred Penguins
scramble out upon the stones, again exchanging the vigorous and _gi-aceful
movements and attitudes for which they are so remarkable while in the
water for helpless and ungainly ones, tumbling over the stones and
apparently with difficulty assuming their nonnal position, upright on
their feet, which are set far back, and with their fin-like wings hanging
in a useless kind of way at their sides. When they have got fairly
out of the water, beyond the reach of the surf, they stand together for
a few minutes, di-ying and dressing themselves and talking loudly
apparently congi-atulating themselves on their safe landing, and then
they scramble in a body over the stony beach, many falling and pulling

iVESTS AND EGGS CA AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

loog

theuiselvos up again with the liulp of their iUppcrs ou thu way, and
.make straight for one particular gangway into the sciiib, along which
they wa<l(lle in regular order aip to the rookerj'. In the meantime
a group of about equal number appears from the rookery at tho end of
another of tho j^aths. When they get out of tho grass on to the beach,
they all stop and t;ilk and look about them, sometimes for throe or
four minutes. They then with one consent scuttle down over the
stones into the water, and long lines of ripple, radiating rapidly from
tlieir place of departiU"e, are the only indications, that the birds are
speeding out to sea. The tussock-brake, whicli on Inaccessible Island
is perhaps foul' or five acres in extent, was alive with Penguins breeding.
(Tins was in the latter pai"t of October.) Tlie nests are built of tho stems
aiid leaves of the Sjiartina, in the space between the tussocks. They
ai'o two or three inches higli, with a slight depression for the eggs, and
about a foot in diameter. The gangways between the tussocks, along
which the Penguins are constantly passing, arc wet and slushy, and the
tangled gi-ass, the strong ammoniacal smell, and tlie deafening noise
continually penetrated by loud separate somids, wuicli have a startling
resemblance to the human voice, make a walk through the rookei-y
neither easy nor pleasant.

" The Penguin is tliieldy covered with the closest felting of down and
feathers, except a longitudinal band, which in the female extends along
tho middle line of the lower part of ^the abdomen, and which, at all
events in the breeding season, is without feathci-s. The bird seats
herself almo-t upright iipon the eggs, supportc4 by the feet and the
stiff featliei's of the tailj the feathers of the abdomen drawn apart, and
the naked band directly applied to the eggs, doubtless with the object
of bringing them into immediate contact with the source of warmth.
The female and the male .sit by turns ; but the featherloss space, if
present, is not nearly so marked in the male. When they shift qnart.ers
they sidle up close, together, and the change is made so rapidly that the
eggs are scarcely uncovered for a moment. The j'oung, which are
liatched in about six weeks, are ciu-ious-looking little things, covered
with black down. There seems to' be little doubt that the Penguins
properly belong to the sea, which they inhal^it within moderate distance
of the sliore, and they only come to the land to breed and, to moult and
for the yovmg to develop svifficiently to become independent. But
all this takes so long that the birds are practically the greater part, of
their time about the shore. We have seen no reason as yet to question
the old notion that their presence is an indication that land is not far off."

M

IQIO A'ESTS AND EGGS Of AUSTRAUA.V BIRDS.

739. EUDYPTULA MINUU, Fol'stLT. (GG'J)

LITTLE PENGUIN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. S4.

Kejcrcncc. — Cat. Birds Brit. .Mus., vol. xxvi., \i. 64O.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1S4S),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 5-!o (1S65) ; I'olts : Trans. New
Zealand Inst., vol. ii., p. 75 (1S70); Uuller ; Birds of New
Zealand (1873), vol. ii., p. 301 (iSSS) ; Legge : I'roc;. Roy. Soc,
Tasmania, p.' 134 (iSSS) ; North; Austn. Mus. Cat, p. 349 (1889J;
Le Souiif ; Ibis, p. 420 (1895).

UciKjrajiltica/ Distrihutioii. — Coasl.s of Ntnv Sutith Wak's, N'lcUiria,
South and West-Australia and Tasmania ; also New Zealand.

Nest. — A little di'v grass or weeds, placed in cavities uiuler or l)elweeii
rocks,;a hollow scraped out underneath tussock grass or other vegetation
or soinetiines a deserted Petrel's burrow, usually on i.^olatcd islands.

Eyy.'f. — Clutch, two ; iucliued to jiyriforni or roundish in
shape ; toxtm-e of .slicll coarse ; surface slightly glossy ; colour,
white, with a faint greenish tinge, especially when fresh. Dimensions
in inches of selected clutches: A (1) 2-32 x 1-68, (2) 2-31 x 1-67;

B (1) 2-3 X 1-62, (2) 2-19 X 1-59 ; C (1) 2-24 x 1-G7, (2) 2-2 x 1-G8.

Ohsi_'rvu(ii)ii!<. — These cvu"ious little creatures, marvellous for their
diving powers, frequent the soutliern coast line of Australia, also the
coasts of Tasmania, and New Zealand, making their breeding homes ou
the islands adjacent thereto.

The Little Penguin has a coat of light-blue and a silveiy-white under-
surface. Total length, 18 inches. As Gould points out. Little Puiguins
are numerous on nearly all the islands in Bass .Strait from SepI ember
to January — the breeding sea.son. Probably they are found far out
a.t sea diu'ing the remainder of the year. From what he personally
jbservcd while residing on these islands, the task of incubation seemed
nnibually to bs divided by both sexes, each I'egularly relieving the other
during the night.

My introduction to tliLSe Penguins was on Philli]) Island, Oclobei,
1880, where there was a small "rookery'' on Red Point. What witl
tlie quaiTying for red granite and other disturbances, the birds have
departed. A few, however, may still be found about the Nobbies at
the other, (western) end of the island.

In the vicinity of our camp on the Kent Group, luimbers of Little
Penguins made the night hideous with their weird, groaning cries.
One afternoon, we explored a " rookery " on the side of Murray Pass,
the locality being an ascent from the sea of about 1 in 2 for alxnit 300
or 400 yards. Between the rocks thick cro])s of the yellow-llowering
Goodenia and tus.socky grass flourished under sturdy she-oaks. HeiT-
abouts we found many nooks and crevices of rock, or snug places under
rank herbage (see illustration), tenanted with a Penguin sitting upon

H

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3
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W
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AfESTS AND EGGS UP AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. loi I

a p:iir of cji^gs or downy youug. , With (.-ouaidLrable spii'it ami wilh a. fruu
use of bill and claws the birds splendidly defeudcd their ofl'spriug — aud,
it uiay bo added, to the discomfiture of one or two of tho party
who attempted to take eggs. It was noticed how highly odo-

riferous most of the uesliiig-holes were ; some, judging by their
" strength," we calculated had been constantly occupied since tlie days
of Captain Cook. In a few instances we observed four eggs — two good
aud two addled — in one nest. Date, November, 1890.

Again, three yeai's aftci'war'ds, we heard the familiar calls all night
long, from an islet near where we lay at anchor in Franklin iSound,
Fiu'ucaux Group. We intended to investigate the place, to ascertain
if the two species (the Little and the Fairy Penguins) were there, but,
putting off the chance for a more convenient time, the opportunity
never again occiuTcd.

Mr. D. Le Souef, in his daring axlveuturc with Mr. 11. P. C. Ashwortli
ou Albatross liock, 1894, prociu'ed some very interesting information
concerning the two species of small Penguins (E. iniimr and E. undina ).
lu the ■■ Ibis " for October, 1895, he states : " The birds were extremely
numerous ; they had their nests both under rocks and in crevices near
the water's edge, and also on the top of the island under tussocks of
gi'ass and other herbage ; in fact, .the whole island was a large Penguin
rookery, as their nests were found eveiywhere. Jvist before dark they
approached their landing places in flocks of some thirty birds. They
waited about one lumdred yards out from the land for some little time
before coming in, and occasionallv two flocks were to be seen not fai"
from one another, the members of each flock keeping very close together.
After a time one lot would rapidly approach the land, swimming both
on and under the surface, and coming in just behind the break of the
swell. Thus they looked exactly like a shoal of fish, with their shining
bluish backs and silveiy-white bellies, swimming quickly through the
water. They all endeavoured to get a foothold on the rocks before the
drawback carried them away again, and there was a gi-eat deal of squealing
and splashing about in the water in their haste to accomplish it. This
many of them did, but the remainder were cai^ried back, only to be
brought in again bv the succeeding swell, when probably they made good
their landing. To avoid being dashed to pieces against the ragged rocks
by the heavy sea as it comes thimdering in, they turn roimd and swim
rapidly against the surf, which prevents theii' coming against any obstacle
with so much force as they otherwise woidd when being carried in ; and
when the swell has spent itself, and just before the drawback occurs,
they endeavour to secm-e a landing. Now and then a pair of bii'ds may
be seen hunying in by themselves, but as a rule they anive in companies.

" The birds, when first seen approaching the island, were in a com-
pact flock, and did not collect together just before coming on shore, so
it is probable that they keep together when out at sea during the day.
After landing they assembled just above high-water mark, and remained
there for some time preening their feathere. When about half an houi'
had elapsed after the first contingent landed, and the numbers had been
augmented by fresh an'ivals to over one lumdred birds, one would start
along their well-worn track, and the others would all follow, but they

IOI2 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

soon branched oil along tlic different paths that led lu their various
nests. Many ascended steep inclines to reach tlie top of the island,
and it was astonishing' to see them climbing up at an angle of GO deg.
and more, occasionally , aiding themselves with their wings and beak,
sometimes wallving, sonietnnes hopping from rock to rock.

" On reaching their mates on the nest they commenced their peculiar
braying sound, fii'st one bird and then the other ; and in the caves, where
nimibers of these birds had their nests, tho soiuid was kept up more or
less all night. The noise is very loud and discordant. Two slightly
different notes were heard ; possibl)' one was made by the Little and the
other by the Faiiy Penguin. The two kinds of birds did not seem to
land at the saane time, but got mixed up when congregating on the
landing places. The Fairy Penguin appeared to be of a brighter colour
than the larger species.

" The young of Ijoth species were covered with very dark-brown down,
and obtained their food by jmtting their beak inside that of their parent
• — the yotmg being very noisy at feeding time.'

740. EUDYPTULA UNUINA, Gould. (G70)

FAIRY PENGUIN.

Figure. — Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 85.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. .\.\vi., p. 646.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(18S3) ; North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 350 (1S89).

Geoyrapliicdl Dint rilmt imt. — Coasts of Victoria and Ta.sniauia
(including intermediate islands) ; also New Zealand.

Nest. — Crevice of a rock or a hollow scraped out under vegetation.

Eggs. — Chilch, two ; roundi.sh in l'(]rm, but more compressed at one
end; texture of shell coarse; surface slightly glo.ssy, occasionally with
some largo limy nodules ;coloiir, white, with a perceptible greenish tinge.
Dimensions in inches of a pair : (1) 1-'J8 x 1-55, (2) r97 x 1-53.

Ohfiirvalioiix. — The Fairy Penguin is the smallest of its singular trilx;,
and frequents the seas surrouiuling Tasmaniai and New Zealand. It
has been foimd in Port Phillip waters.

Many authoiities regard the Fairy Penguin as the young of the
E. minor, but it differs from that bird in being constantly less in size
(about 14 inches in total length) and in the deeper glossy blue colouring
of the upjx:r surface of the body. Gould says: "I invariably found
the young of that species (E. inimir) while still partly clothed in tho
downy dress of inimatvu'ity, to exceed considerably in size all the examples
of this species (E. nndiiut), even when adorned in the adult livery and
])ossessing the hard bill of maturity. There can be no question there-
fore of the two birds being distinct."

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1613

In Gould's day the Faiiy Pcngriiii was breeding on Watcrhousc
Island, olT the north coast of Tasmania. The tggs in my collcetion were
collected on Cape Mai'ia van Diemcn, New Zealand, September lUlli,
1887.

Sir Weaker BiUlcr states he has found this Little Penguin far more
tractable than the large crested species, for iimler judicious management
it will sixin become perfectly tame.

A coiTesjK)ndent (" H.M.N. "), writing to " The Australasian," 25tli
May, 1S9S, states that " Small I'cnguins arc common in the Dorwent,
where they may be seen sometimes in flocks of half a dozen. As a, rule,
thej' go about in paire. They are seldom seen singly. I had an
opportimity of watching one feeding. It liad driven a shoal of garfsh
into a shallow in Sandy Bay, by darting backwards and forwards behind
them in decreasing semi-circles. When I arrived it had the fish bailed
np in about twelve inches of water, right against the rocks. The speed
with which it swam along the bottom was astonishing. It used its
wings as paddles witli a quick fluttering motion. It seemed to be flying
under water. When it had got the fish conveniently together, it made
a dart into the shoal, and seized one nearly as long as itself, swallowing
it instantly. So quickly were the fish disposed of that I coidd not see
any act of swallowing. The fish was simply seized, and then it vanished.
A few half-circles on the part of the Penguin brought the fish together
again, and another was seized and swallowed. If I had not shown
m}'self over the rocks, and alanned the Penguin, I have no doubt it
would have devoiured the whole shoal. I watched for several minutes,
and theiPenguin did not once rise to the surface for breath.''

I have been much entertained while witnessing the turning move-
ments of wonderful rapidity made by tlie Little Penguin after small
fry in the waters of Hobson's Bay. But I have noticed that the bii'd,
at int<'rvals, invariably brought its bill to the surface of the water to
breathe, albeit for half a second only, and wliile keeping up the chase.
Frequently when pursuer and piu'sued came to close quarters their move-
ments were so rapid as almost to deceive the eye.

1 01^4 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRD$.

^RDER-CHENOMORPH/E.
5ub=0rder— Anseres : Geese, &c.

FAMILY— ANATID^ : DUCKS.

Sub-family — Cygnin/E : Swans.

741. — Chenop.sis atrata, Lathain. — (577)
BLACK SWAN.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 6.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. .\xvii., p. 41.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1S48),
also Handbook, vol. li., p. 34S (1865); North: Austn. Mus.
Cat., p. 33; (iSSg).

Genyrnphicdl DisfrHnitinu. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania.

Next. — Large, open, itsually constnii'ted of coarse aquatic herbage,
sticks, bark, &c., sometimes lined with a, thick layer of finer material —
such as leaves, bark, roots of gi-ass, and finished inside with a few featliei's
and a small quantity of down. Generally situated amongst the sedges
or rank vegetation of a swamp, or on debris at th^ base of a tree in the
centre of a lagoon. Dimensions : base, at water, 39 inches in diameter
by 17 inches high ; top or egg cavity, 12J iuclies across by 3A inches deep.

E(/</ii. — Clutch, four to .six, rarely seven to ejght ; elliptical in shape ;
texture of shell coarse ; surface glossy ; colour, dull greenish-white, more
or less soiled with brownish stains: if the outside coating bo removed
a pale green shell is reve.aled. Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch :
(1) 4-2 X 2-5, (2) 4-15 x 2-55, (3) 4-1 x 2-58, (4) 4-05 x 2-5, (5) 4-0 x 2-57.
Average weight, when full, about 9 ounces.

Oh.terratioim. — Few large birds are more ornamental and interesting
than the Black Swan, which is found in almost every part of Australia,
particularly in the southern portions, including Tasmania.

Its elegant figiu'e is well knowai. Its du.sky pliunage is nllevid with
pinkj'-red eyes and bill, and more strikingly witli white ])inions, especially
when tlio bird is on the wing. Black Swans love tlie sheltered .salt
waters, swamps, and estuaries of the coast, a.s well ,as (lie fresli lakes
and lagoons of the int<'rior.

These splendid birds are still numerous in the lakes and back-water.s
of Gippsland. Naturally the Black Swaji was <x conspicuous bird to
tho early discoverers of Australia, and gave rise to sueli geograpl\ical
names as Swan River, Swan Bay, Swan Reach, itc. The liistory and

NEST OF THE BLACK SWAN.

From a Phvto by the A uthor.

A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN B7RPS. 1015

discovery of the first montionod locality in Western AiLstralia is especially
interesting. On Christmas Day, 1697, the early navigator, Vlaniing,
discovered and named that river, the name being suggested by the great
niunbers of Black Swans, seen for the first time upon its waters. Several
birds were captured and introduced by Vlajiiing into Europe, where
they were quite unknown, therefore the Black Swan is probably the
oldest known of AustraJian birds on record.

Gould wa.s of opinion that the fiist recordid notice respecting the
Black Swan occurs in a letter, written by Mr. Witsen to Dr. M. Lister
nUniit the year 1698, which states : " Here is returned a ship, which by
oiu- East India Company was sent to the south land, called Hollandia
Nova," and mentions that Black Swans were found there.

In 1726 two were brought alive to Batavia, which were procured
near Dirk Hartog Island, Western Australia. We all love to read
ancient ornithological records.

The first mention we have of Black Swans in Victorian watere (then
part of New South Wales) was, when Ba.ss bravely coasted round from
Sydney in an open whale-boat with six seamen and six weeks' provisions.
On entering Western Port, 5th Januaiy, 1798, he said — " Black Swans
went by hundreds in a flight. Later on when Captain Grant was
sui-\'eying the place in the "Lady Nelson," 1801, his people, too, "saw
many Swans," and " captured a couple of cygnets, one of which became
tame and was presented to Governor King."

Lieutenant Murray, when discovering Port Phillip entrance, 4th
Februaiy, 1 802, has left on record, "Swans, Pelicans, and other birds
of various sorts were seen in great numbers. The boat's crew lived on
Swans all the time they were away. '

Mentioning Western Port, my genial friend the late Thomas Charles
King, when master of the schooner " Redwing," went into that port.
ISoO, and sent his ship's boat up to Yallock Creek one afternoon, which
returned with no less than thirty-two dozen eggs.

At that particular creek what a joy it is, and a captivating sight for
an observer from land, to break cautiously through the closely-packed
tea-tree scnib and peep out on the waters of the Bay. Some Swans
arc .seen yonder on land, hardly to be distinguislied on account of their
sombre garb assimilating so closely the colour of the dark loamy shore ;
however, they may be discovered by cygnets in greyish down pattering
neai'. The middle distance is occupied with other Swans, with their
long necks gi-acefuUy curved, finding bottom for food in shoaling watei's ;
while beyond, far out, is a long regiment in black uniforms upon the
bosom of the Bay, retmiiing and advancing with the ebb and flow of
each recurring tide. Such a picture I have witnessed.

Gould prociu-ed newly-hatched young at South Port River, Tasmania,
and took fiVe fresh eggs on Flinders Island, Bass Strait, 13th Januai-y,
1839.

I found a Black Swan's nest during a trip to Riverina,
16th September, 1894. It contained five eggs, partly incu-
bated, and was placed on a fallen branch near the base of
a box-tree, in the centre of a lagoon, where the water was about two
feet deep. Tlie nest was large and broad at the base, constructed of

IOl6 A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

sticks, bark, &c.j and lined witli fine material, iuchidiug a few feathers
and sonio dowai. On a<:'COTint of its pictiu'csque situation it made an
excellent photograph (see jlliistration), which, however, was not taken
withovit difficulty, although 1 was ably assisted by my companion,
Mr. J. Gabriel. In the first place our frail flatty was wretchedly leaky ;
in the second place, owing to tlie depth of water about the nest, tlie
tripod of my camera would not stick in the mud — the buoyant legs, first
one and then another, were always struggling to the siu-face of the
water.

Gould believed in the great fecundity of the Black Swan. However,
Ills test was hardly a satisfactory one, considering the pair of birds was
kept in captivity, and in England. They bred sixteen times in seven
years, laying 111 eggs, or an average of seven to a sitting. It was
observed that the male and female relieved each other in incubating.*

The young Swans, or Flappers as they are called, are readily rowed
down and captured for sport; the old bii'ds, too, when they shed their
primary quill-feathers and are unable to fly. Monitors may be found
at almost any time of the year, but chiefly in summer — the middle of
November to the middle of February.

It is music to the naturalist's ear to hear overliead the wild cries of
Swans passing by in the night. In provinces where the waters are
di-ying up. Swans travel their young overland bj' night, ai precaution,
no doubt, against attacks of diiu-nal birds of prey. The daring little
White-fronted Falcon has been known to boat a Swan on flight to the
gi'ound in a state of ten-or.

Black Swans appear to lay in winter sometimeSj as well as under
a svmimer's sim. I possess a note from West Australia, of five eggs
liaving been taken on the Gascoyne River one I'ith July, and young were
seen on the Minilya the 7th of the same month. During July, 1894,
hundreds of Swans' eggs were taken on Moira Lakes, River Miu'ray, by
the blacks at the Cummcragunja Mission Station.

On the other hand, in Januaiy, 1885, a Black Swan's nest (six eggs)
was obsei-ved on Lake Hindmarsh, Victoria. Again, on the 31st
January, 1894, about two dozen fresh eggs were taken on Lake Buloke,
near Donald, Victoria, and found their way into the fish market.
Mr. T. Lewis, the inspector, kindly gave mo one, which T lulpod to eat,
its flavovu' being as delicious as a domestic duck's.

Usual breeding season August to Januaiy. An old observer says
that in Riverina they lay six weeks earlier or later, according to the
rains. Two or three broods are .supposed to bo reared a season.

Writing of the Black Swan in South Queensland, Mr. Honnann Lan
quaintly says: — " No.st, three foot thick, placed in quiet water, firm on
the bottom. The female only sits (?). Floating grass stalks, should
t,hcy pass by, arc added to the nest. Six eggs are laid. Breeds (hroe
times a year: in March, August, .and November, The dutj' of the mate
is to protect; but before the female lays again ho chases the grown-ui)
young away."

Cygnets about a week old are clothed in ligjit.ish-coloiu'cd down,
tipjiod with darjf-groy. Many eggs and yovuig arc destroyed by water-

• Usually the female sitting by day anJ the male by night —A.J. C.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUStRAfJAN BIRDS. \o\y

rats — by the wliite-bellied species in Gippslaml, .iiicl by the golden-bellied
in Riverina.

Mr. H. E. Hill in his " Bcndigo Bird Notes," relates tlint on tlie 8th
August, 189G, two Black Swans while ilying across the town struck the
top of the Town Hall, apparently dazzled by the el(Mlric light, and fell
dead in the street below.

Subfamily — Anseran.\tin;e.

742. — Anskranas semipalm.\ta, Latham. — (r)70)

PIED GOOSE.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 2.
Reference.— Cai. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 44.
Previous Descriptions of Eg^s. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883); North: .\ustn. Mus. Cat., p. 335 (iSSq).

Geographical Distrihutimi. — Australia in general and Tasmania.

Jest. — Round, bulky, composed entirely of dead flags and jilaced
amongst the growing flags or reeds of a swamp or lagoon. A platform
about 48 inches long leads up to the nest. Dimensions over all, 28 to 30
inches by about 20 inches from the top to the surface of the water, not
inchubng about 12 inches for submerged foundation; egg cavity, 12
inches across by 4 inches deep.

E[/f/.i. — Clutch, five to thirteen, but usually nine to eleven ; ellip-
tical in form ; texture of shell coarse ; surface pitted, but glossy ; colour,
creamy or yellowish-white, soon soiled with nest stains. Dimensions
in inches of half a clutc-h : (1) 3-1 x 222, (2) 3-05 x 2-26, (3) 302 x 2-31,
(4) 3-0 X 2-3, (5) 3-0 x 2-2G ; of a pair from a set of six : (1) 3-0 x 2-25,
(2) 2-98 X 2-27.

Ohmrvatimu. — The Semipalmated Goose is so named on account of
its feet being half-webbed, but it is more frequently called the Pied
Goose, beca.use of its conspicuous black and white pliunage. It is a
fine bird. It ranks next in importance to the Black Swan and Cape
BaiTen Goose. Like these species, it is peculiar to Australia.

The Semipalmated Goose is fovuid in places throughout the Continent,
but only occasionally in Tasmania. Its greatest numbers are probably
in tropical Australia, where, in the wet (summer) season, according to
explorers and others, the Geese sometimes fly in countless flocks. They
were at one time tolerably abundant in Riverina, making their homes
in the rush-covered lagoons and overflow waters of the rivers and billa-
bongs. But, as Gould truly remarks — and it is melancholy for naturalists
and lovers of nature to contemplate the fact — the advancement of civi-
lisation invariably leads to the gradual extirpation of the conspicuous
natural productions of the country. So, owing to the settling of

lOlS A'ESTS AS'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Riverina, and the taking up of the great river frontages, the black and
while Semipahnated Goose is rapidly disappearing. Why do land-
owners not prcsor-vo their swamps ? Why are birds shot in close season
and on Svuidays? Why do oiu- police treat the Game Act as a dead
letter?

Some of the domains of the Pied Goose remain undisturbed in
the reed beds of the Mui-ray Lagoons. The naturalist feels an

ecstasy of delight in wading through such places to examine the haunts
of wild fowl, notwithstanding' such localities abound with tiger snakes
and leeches and myriads of flies and mosquitoes. (See illustration,
" Haunt of Wild Fowl")

One bright day (14th November, 1892) Mr. J. Gabriel and I, accom-
panied by the Messi's. Sach — two young fanners — explored a beautiful
lagoon parallel with the MuiTay, full of aquatic vegetation — floating
lily leaves, russet-colovu'ed seeding plants, circular patches of " cum-
bungie " reeds, &c., with here and there tall flags, and an occasional
red gum-tree.

After a small " rookei-y " of White ibis and a Bittenv's nest, we dis-
covered amongst the living flags a large, lovuid, bulky nest, composed
entirely of dead flags, containing a full complement of ten eggs of the
Semipalmated Goose, the water roimd about being about a foot deep.
We took a photogi-aph (pictuie herewith). The nest had a singidar
platform or landing at one side about foiu" feet long, extending from the
top down to the water. The dimensions over all were 28-30 inches by
about 20 inches from the top to the water-line, but not including
12 inches for the submerged foundation. The eggs were partially
incubating, as were two other sets (of five and six) fomid in other parts
of the swamp, which we took for museum purposes.

Mr. George H. Morton, of Benjeroop, who has made many wading
excursions after water-fowl in the swamps contigiious , to his farm on
the MvuTay, tells me that eleven eggs are a usual complement for the
Semipalmated Goose, and on one occasion he found thirteen. His
collection of fresh wild Geese eggs once furnished material for the cakes
and custards at a Sunday school ^picnic.

Many .species of swimming birds — ^i.e.. Ducks and Geese — have re-
markable windings in the trachea, or windpipe, but in no bird are they
more singular than in the Semipalmated Goose, the total length of the
windpipe being 4 feet 8 inches, while the length of the bird's own body
from tip of bill to tail is only 2 feet 8 inches. The legs are yellowish,
while the eyes and bill are reddish-brown.

The Semipalmated Goose feeds mostly on grass and herbage. Like
the Black Swan and Capo BaiTcn Goose, it is gregarious. Neai- the
Murray dining favourable sea-sons, at sundown, when the Native Com-
panions are coming in, black and white Geese may lie seen pa.ssing in
strings over the fringe of red-gums that mark the river's course, as they
proceed to the plains and feeding-])laees for the night. An early rLser
may see the flocks in the morning returning, re-crossed by n^giments of
Native Cnmp.nninns outgoing on heavy outstretched wings.

.u

/;«"

^

V

*^:/,l4

o
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X

H

NESTS AND i:GGS OF AUSTRALIAN JSlRbS. IciJ

Sub-family — Plectropterin^.

743. — Nettopus pulchellus, Gould. — (581)
GREEN GOOSE TEAL.

Figure.— GonM : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 4.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 67.
Previous Descriptions 0/ Kg^s. — Gould: Birds of Australia, (iS4S),also
Handbook, vol. ii., p. 358 (1S65).

Geographical Distrilmtion. — North-west Australia, Northern Terri-
tory, and Nortlt Queensland; also New Guinea, Teniniber Islands,
Moluccas, and Celebes.

JVesf. — Constructed of long dry grasses, the slight cavity for the
eggs being sometimes lined with feathers and down ; usually resting
upon the surface of the water among the herbage of a swamp or lagoon.
Possibly the eggs are occasionally deposited in hollow trees.

Eijyx. — Clutch, eight to ten probably ; coloiu', whitish. Dimensions
in inches : 1-88 x 1-38 (Gould).

Ohservations.- — Of these beautiful little Geese, hardl}' as large as a
Teal (hence the apt name. Goose Teal), there arc two species found in
Australia, chiefly in the northern portion. The Green Goose Teal
(X. pill I'll el ht!<) may be described as having neck, back, and wings of a
beautiful, deep, glossy -gi'een ; underneath surface white in general, with
aiTow-liead-hke markings of black on the flanks; eyes and legs dark-
brown, and bill greenish-grey; total length, about 13 inches. This
lovely Goose Teal is an intertropical species, being found not only in
the northern parts of Australia, but also in Austro-Malayan regions.

During oiu' Cardwell encampment my companions (Messrs. A and F.
Coles) shot a brace of these neat little Geese in a placid lagoon, where
large, blue water-liUcs grew. They experienced much difficulty in
retrieving the specimens by having to swim through the tough,
interlacing coils of the water-Uly stems and leaves. Persons have been
drowned in such places, by getting entangled in these ready-made
vegetable ropes, when batlung or after game.

In the Port Darwin district, Gilbert, on Janiiary 16th, first saw a
pair of these beautiful birds swimming on a f(uiet, secluded lake, shut
in on all sides by very high grass. The two birds he succeeded in
killing at one shot. On dissecting the female, Gilbert found a nearly-
developed egg in the ovarium, and was induced to search for the nest,
which lie found built up from the water in the long grass. The nest
had no lining, probably because tlie female had not commenced laying.
Subsequently, a nest brought in by the aborigines, containing six eggs,

I020 f^ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

was furnished witli fcatliers. Fiutlier research mnj' prove that this
pigmy Goose, hke the Goose Teal of India, may, in some instances,
breed in hollow trees.

Mr. T. A. Gulliver, Tovmsville (Queensland), with whom tliis little
Goose was a siDecial favovrnto, from observations made at Normanton,
Gulf of Cai-pentaria, came to the conclusion that the bird breeds in the
large fresh-water lakes some distance inland, and migrates to the shores
of the Gulf as soon as the young can fly. About the middle of
February, or as soon as the water in the lagoons at Normanton gets
low, and consequently brackish, the little Goose makes its exit, and is
not seen again until the beginning of the next wet season. On their
first arrival, numbers of them are of a dull colour, and proved to be
yoimg birds. Before they take their departure they are all full
plumaged.

744. — Nettopus Albipennis, Gould — (r)S2)
WHITE-QUILLED GOOSE TEAL.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 5.

Reference. — Cat Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 72.

Previous Descriptions oj Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883); North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 337 (iSSy).

(Trixjriiphlcdl Dixtriliution. — Queensland and New South Wales.

Nest. — In the hollow spout of a tree near water.

Ecjcja. — Clutch, eight to ten probably ; oval in shape ; texture of
shell comparatively fine ; surface glossy ; colour, creamy-white. Dimen-
sions in inches : r95 x 1-49.

Observations. — The White-quilled Goose Teal resembles the pre-
ceding, and may be distinguished by its white pinions, and it,s tuider
surface being more freckled about the flanks. This more soulliern
species of diminutive Goose is found in Quoeiislaiid and New South
Wales, chiefly frequenting the rivers and swamp.s of tiie coa-stal region.

Like its northern ally, not much is known of its habits. I possess
a single egg, received from Dr. A. E. Cox. Save that it was taken in
the Clarence River district, it was without data. Its description coin-
cides with a specimen sidjsequently described (1889) in the " Catalogue "
of the Australian Museum, which was taken from the oviduct of a bird
shot by Mr. J. Macgillivray, at South Grafton, during October, 1801.

In answer to a question of mine, Mr. .I.iines C Wikox, of (he same
district, has kindly sent me the following note : — " One of the birds had
its nest in the spout of a gum-tree, about seventy feet from the groinid.
in my garden at South Grafton, and, from what I remember, there were
seven or eight young ones, which she carried out in her bill after they
were h.atched. The .spotit almost overhangs a small creek. I recollect
a j'Otuig one falling out. of the ne.st. into the w.iter, but it swam away
unconcerned. I know of other nests in trees about our swamps."

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NliSTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 102 1

Subfamily — Cereopsin^.

745. — Ceheopsis nuvve hollandi-e, Latham. — (578)
CAPE BARREN GOOSE.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. i.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. .\xvii., p. 71).

Previous Descriflioiis of Egg'- — Gould : Birds of Australia (1S48),

also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 351 (1S65) ; North : Austn. Mus.

Cat., p. 334 (iS8()); Cainpbell : Victorian Naturalist (1S94).

Gengraphiail Dixtrihution. — Victoria, South and West Australia,
and Tasmania., inehiding ishinds in Bass Strait.

Nest. — Somewhat flat, constructed of a good layer of grass, &c.,
lined inside plentifully with down, and usually situated on the ground
amongst saltbush or tussock grass, but occasionally placed a few feet
from tiie ground on thick scrub. Dimensions over all, about 18 inches;
inside, 9 to 10 inches across by 3 inches deep.

Eijijs. — Clutcli, four to SIX ; elliptical in form, sometimes rather
pointed at either end ; texture of shell coarsi' ; surface, a trifle limy
but glossy ; colour, a very thin outer creamy-white coating, on being
scratched or otherwise removed reveals a white shell. Dimensions in
inches of a proper clutch : (1) 3-03 x 2-16, (2) 2-95 x 2-11, (3) 2-92 x 2-15,
(4) 2-92 X 2-14, (5) 2-88 x 2-12.

Uhscrvations. — This singular and scarce Goose is more terrestiial
than aquatic. It inhabits .some of the isolated islands oflt the southern
coast of Australia. It occa.sioually visits the mainland, or is driven
thither through stress of weather.

Mr. H. W. Wheelwright recollects seeing Cape Barren Geese at
MorcUalloc, Victoria, in the " fifties " — once in a small flock, and again
when two pitched among some domestic Geese and were captured.
They soon became tame. More recently (season 1898) a small flock
alighted near a swamp at the back of William.stown. One fell to a
fowler's gun.

At one time it was thought that the Cape Barren Goose was res-
tricted to the islands in Bass Strait, but I was glad to be able to record
(in 1890) its presence in Western Australia, having seen birds from
Bald Island, near King George's Sound. I have since learnt the bird
also exists in Recherche Archipelago, and other islands in the Great
Australian Bight.

Mr. Alfred Crompton, writing from Adelaide, in " Tlie Australasian,"
says : " The Cape Ban-en Goose is almost common on parts of tlie coast
of the mainland here, or visits certain districts frequently. I have

1022 XESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

questioned some of our small craft coasting men, and the general answer
was that the bird is very numerous on all the grassy uninhabited islands
between here and the head of the Australian Bight. Birds are to be
found at times on practically all the inhabited islands ; only, as t he
people settle, the birds become scarce in the neighbourhood.

" Some years ago fishermen in Spencer Gulf did a thriving trade
in the spring catching young birds and fattening them for Ciiristmas,
but the Government stopped all that by enforcing the close season laws.

" The only places I have seen them wild are on the coast near Port
Elliott, at the head of Encounter Bay, and at Port Willunga, about
thirty miles south of Adelaide.

" All along this coast the wheat-fields go within 400 to 500 yards
of the sea. The young birds leave the islands to the west when they
are fledged (about November), and some find their way to the wheat-
fields, where they sometimes do a great deal of harm (so the fanners
will tell you)."

Their numbers in Bass Strait are becoming alarmingly small. A
bird so valuable and important should be rigidly protected. The close
sca.son is faulty. On the Victorian side the Geese are protected from
June 14tli ; in Tasmania — to which the majority of the islands in Bass
Strait belong — fi-om August 1st. It can be proved that the birds in the
wild state sometimes lay as early as April and May, while the female
of a pair at the Zoological Gardens last season laid her full clutch by
the middle of June.

We read that in the early days Cape Barren Geese wore so tame
that they might be knocked down with sticks, or even captured by
hand. Since then they must have changed their habit-s, because the
Geese ilew away long before we even approached their island homes.
On the expedition of the Field Naturalists'Club of Victoria to Funieaux
Group, in 1893, we saw a flock of about thirty birds on Woody Island.
The protective colour of the grey plumage in a remarkable degi'ec pre-
vented the birds from Ix'ing readily noticed on shore, amongst the gi'ey
lichen-covered rocks, where they were feeding. As we landed the birds
rose, wheeled round the island, then flew down Franklin Sound to .some
other islet. Cape Barren Geese received their name from the early
voyagers, who found them on Cape Barren Island, which forms the
south side of the sound. Wc saw a flock of about twenty on Chalky
Island, while a few, iiu'hiding large goslings, were observed on the
Babel Islands, off the east coast of Flinders Island. Here we shot
two, which were roasted for camp pui-posos. Tlic flesh, although some-
what dry, is excellent, being tasty and gamey.

Mrs. Robinson, of Green Island, who has observed the birds for
many years, as well as kept some in captivity, furnished us with an
interesting account of their habits.

?]ach bird possesses its own mate. Should a Goose in caiilivity
lose her mate, the prol)ability is that she joins a wild flock, and never
returns. Should the gander lose his wife, he entices a wild bird to
dwell with him. An old bird never mates with a young one, nor do
young from the same clutch pair or breed. The birds do not lay till
tliey are two years old. The Geese have a voracious appetite, their

NESTS AXD EGGS OF AUSTKAf.IA.V BIRDS. 1023

chief food being herbage. They cat nearly all day, and frequently by
night, quickly digesting their food. Sheep will not graze after them,
as in the case of the domesticated Goose.

When a uest is robbed of its eggs the birds lay again, and c viii
three times, in the same nest.

When we visited Cai^e Barren Island, an islander |)re.sented me with
a pair of the previous season s birds, which I brought home. They
proved docile pets, and amused my friends and neighbours with tlnir
deep hoarse voice, resembling the loud grunt of a pig. I was told
1 might expect a visit from the inspector of nuisances, because it was
supposed I was keeping swine, contrary to the town regulations. Much
to my sorrow, one of the Geese partook too freely of the Pigeons' hard
food, became cro2>-buund, and died. I transferred it.s iiiate to the Zoo-
logical Gardens, llelbournc.

Cireopxis (the scientific name) is given to the Cape Barren Goose
because it lias a peculiar greenish-yellow cere or skinny patch on its
short bill. Its plumage is of drab, or greyish colour, the tail is black,
eyes bright, yellowish-brown, with large dark pupils; legs brick-red,
blending into black feet. When the legs arc red, that colour is a sign
of maturity. For the first two seasons in the young bird the legs are
dark. The sexes are alike in colouring. Total length of a bird, about
33 inches.

The eggs of Cape Barren Geese are rare. The first pair I received
was from a very suggestive locality, namely. Goose Island, Bass Strait,
1885. I am informed these birds also used to breed on Cape Portland,
Tasmania, the nest being placed among the flags or rushes a short
distance from the sea. A second fine pair of eggs was presented to me
by Dr. Charles Ryan, who received some clutches from Neptune Island,
off the Soutli Australian coast, collected about the end of April (1896).

S UB-FAM ILY CHENONETTIN.a;.

746. — Chenonetta jubata, Latham. — (580)
WOOD DUCK.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 3.

Reference.— Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 140.

Previous Descriptions of £|'^i.— Campbell : Southern .Science Record

(1SS3), also Victorian Naturalist (1SS8) ; North: Austn. Mus.

Cat., p. 336 (1889).

Giugntphical Distrihution. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania.

.Yes^ — Within a hole or hollow spout of a tree, usually standing in
or near water, the place containing the eggs being lined with greyish-
white down, lightest coloured in the centre and on the tips of each
particle.

I024

Ni:srs AND EGGS UF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

E(j(js. — Clutch, 91^ 12 ; oval iu sliapo, or moru compressed at one end ;
textiu'e of shell comparatively fine ; surface glossy ; colour, creamy
white. Dimensions in inches of five examples cr a clutch of eleven :
(1) 2-24 X 1-6, (2) 2-24 x 1-59, -(3) 2-22 x 1-57, (4) 2-2 x 1-58,
(5) 2-08 X 1-58.

Ohsrrvfitions. — The Maned Goose, more commonly called the Wood
jJuck, is one of the most Ijcautifully marked of its tribe. It is a toler-
ably tame and well-known species, being foinid througliout Australia,
and occasionally visiting Tasmania. I suppose it is called Wood Duck
because, unlike most other Ducks, it frequently perches upon trees. Its
note is remarkable, being loud and tnmipet-likc, uttered while the
mandibles are widely extended.

The Maned Goose was .so called on account of the Icnglhened black
plumes down the back of the neck, but although the term Goose was
applied to this bird by Gould himself, he regarded the application as
trivial. No doubt Australians will continue to- call this beautiful bird
tlio Wood Duck. In total length it measures neai-ly 20 inches. Its
flesh is somewhat dry eating, and has not the gamcy flavoiu' of some of
the other members of its tribe. The Wood Duck feeds chiefly on
grasses and aquatic plants and insects

I recollect getting two Wood Ducks without expending ammunition.
One night, years ago, I was at the bottom of Williams road, near the
Yarra, at Toorak. Some person was flight shooting on the river, and
after one shot a fine fat Duck fell near me, dead. On another occjision
dimng the day I was on the margin of the brackish swamp (a gi'eat resort
of game, long since reclaimed) at the back of the West Beach, St. Kilda.
Shots were fired at the far end, and while a (lock of Ducks was wheeling
0VL»r where I stood, one bird fell plump to the gi'ound. In both instances
I canned the booty home.

However much I like to shoot these Ducks for sjxjrt, 1 enjoy better
still to see them in repose or stretching their pinions upon some gi-assy
bank as I pass by, afloat in a. flatty or Ijoat. One admires tiieir freckled
and grey mottled plumage, especially that of the males, so much enriched
witli their glossy black abdomens.

Dvunng a memorable trip I made " Through a Riverina, Flood." with
Mr. J. Gabriel and the Ma<'aulay Brothers, our fii-st find was a Wcwid
Duck's nest. It was in the liollow part of a red gimi, standing in a
floodcfl creek. One of our party temporarily turned Iiimself into a mem-
ber of the " Natatores " tribe by entering the water, then, ascending the
tree, secured a full clutch of eleven eggs and a quantity of the
bird's down (see illustration). Tht' eggs were much incubated. — Date,
8tii September, 1894.

Previously I had described eggs from ('oomooboolaroo (Q.) ; also
a pair from a, clutch of nine taken by Mr. A. Watson, a teacher, wlio got
them from a dead red gum, steinding in a lagoon near S<ilc, Victoria.
Tliero was a considerable quantity of light^coloiu'cd down suirounding
tlie eggs, which were three feet or four feet from the entrance of liie
spout.

A brief note from Mr. llennann Lau's (Queensland) MS. states
tiiat the Wood Duck " invariably breeds in I lie liollow of a tree, some-

Y'^f^^"^^

TAKING A WOOD DUCK'S NEST

Ftom a photo by the Author.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

1025

times at tlie lieight of tliii-ty feet. When the yoiuig are hatclied, the
mother takes them in her bill, placing them one after another between
her shoulder and neck, and so descends to the gi-oiuid. If siu-prised, the
parents fly away, feigning lameness, itc, while the young hide. " I agree
with Mr. Lau when he states the Duek takes the young "in her bill"
in order to convey them to the ground ; but I hardly think it possible
for her to raiTy them " between her shoiildur and neck." Ms. Lau, I
feai-, has been duped into believing the plansiljlc bush yam that Ducks
carry their young on their back. They certainly do so sometimes, wlic^n
a family ai'e pla3-ing together in the water.

Wood Ducks are amongst the earliest of breedei's. I'he yotuig arc
out and swimming when other Ducks are only laying. On oiu^ " Flood '
trip, alread\' mentioned, we saw a brood on the Yalakool, 24tli Septem-
ber, 1894. The breeding time generally lasts from August to January,
but it is regulated by the state of the season in some parts, because
dm-ing the jom-ney of the Horn Scientific Expedition to Central Austra-
lia, 1894, the black-boys attached to the party caught several yoimg
Wood Ducks, on the 19th May, unable to fly.

The young in down are dull-white underneath, and sooty-brown above,
with two stripes along the face.

Sub-family — Anatin^.

747. — Dendrocycna arcuata, Cuvier. — (591)
D. vagans, Eyton.

WHISTLING DUCK.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of .Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 14.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 153.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 375 (1865) ; North : Austn. Mus.
Cat., app. (1890).

Geographical Di.Hrihutinn. — Australia in general ; also New Guinea,
New Caledonia, Fiji, Moluccas, Sumba., Timor, Java., Borneo, Celebes
and Philippines.

Ne.H. — Composed of grass, &c., and placed upon the ground in rank
grass or other herbage, but possibly the eggs are sometimes placed in a
hollow treOj or even in a deserted stick-made nest of some other bird.

Eggs. — Clutch, 10 to 12 usually, 1.5 maximum ; elliptical in
shape, but more or less swollen about the centre, and peculiarly pointed
at either end ; texture of shell fine ; sm-face glossy ; coloiu', a thin outer-
coating, creamy-buff or light stone, on being removed, reveals a liglit
creamy-white shell. Dimensions in inches of four examples ex a clutch
66

1026 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

of fifteen : (1) 2-13 x 1-42, (2) 2-12 x 1-4, (3) 2-09 x 1-43, (4) 2-05 x 1-49 •
Occasionally the eggs of this Duck have here and there (somotinies on
the end, at other times on the side) reddish or piu-plish-brown spots
underlying the surface of the shell. These singular markings (for Ducks'
eggs) have been observed in more than one clutch.

Observations. — There are two species of Whistling Ducks in Australia.
The one imder notice wears, in general, a rich reddish-brown coat, with
short dark bill and large feet (suitable for occasionally perching on trees),
also dark. The flanks are singidarly ornamented with lengthened,
whitish feathers, margined on either side with strips of black.

This exceedingly fine Whistling Duck enjoys a range extending not
only throughout the gi'oater part of Australia, bvit to Austro-Malayan
regions, and parts of the Pacific. In his original work, Gould was
correct in calling it arr.uata, believing it to be the Java bird. But
apparently he allowed his vanity to get the upper hand, because, for a
few minor differences found in the Australian bird, he afterwards
accepted Prince Charles Bonaparte's new specific name, gmihli.

The wings of all Ducks produce, more or less, a whistling noise when
the birds are rapidly flying, but the vernacular name of this bird is
derived from its loud and very characteristic whistling note, generally
emitted when the bird is at rest or alarmed.

During the months from September to December, Gilbert found the
Wliistling Ducks in vast flocks on the lakes in the Port Darwin district.
Some eggs brought to the settlement of Port Essington by tlie natives,
said to belong to this Diick, were taken early in March, from nests built
in long gi'ass on the small i.slaiids adjacent to the harbour.

To the late Mr. George Barnard I was indebted for a pair of eggs
from an imusually large clutch of fifteen, foimd in a. tiissock of grass at
Coomooboolaroo. Mr. Barnard wi-ote : — " Coming home with cattle on
the 25th Mav, 1890, my sons flu.shed a duck of some sort off a nest in
the grass too hurriedly to see what it was. They left it till next day,
when one of them rode out to identify the species. It proved to be
a ' Whistler.' The nest wa.s made in the grass, without any lining of
feathers or down, and contained fifteen eggs in an early stage of incuba-
tion, several of which he took. Tliis Duck is very common in the
neighbourhood, and is found froqiienting the large swamps, but this is
the fi'st time we have obtained the nest."

Mr. S. W. Jackson, South Grafton, Clarence River, Now Soutli
Wales, writes: — Re the Wliistling Duck's eggs and situation of ne.st.
The set of these rare eggs (four) I foi-warded to' you were found by
myself in the following manner, on November 9th, 1894. I found the ( g?s
in a nest constructed of gi-ass, laid flat on the gi-ound, among a field of
oats, which were half dead, and those were bent do\vn to the ground to
form the nest. Upon this wa.s a deep layer of dead grass, upon which
wore twenty or thirty eucalypt (gum) leaves. Strange to say, tliere was
not a feather in the nest. I shot lioth male and female a.s they flew
away from the nest, for identification. Their description agreed with
that given in Gould's ' Handbook.' I have visited the same locality
several times since, but without further success."

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1027

lu the North-west, Mr. Keartland found these birds in large flocks
on the margin of the pools neai- the Fitzi-oy River. Dui-ing the day
they sleep imder the shade of the bushes around the water, but at night
travel out on to the open plains to feed. They deposit their eggs
amongst the spinifcx and cano-grass some distance from water.

748. — Dendrocycna eytoni, Gould. — (592)

PLUMED VVHTSTLING DUCK.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 15.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 165.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay ; Proc. Zool. Soc, p. 346

(1S77) ; North: Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. xxii., p. 60

(1897).

Geographical Distribution. — Australia in general and Tasmania ; also
New Zealand (accidental).

.Vf.s,'. — Similarly situated to that of the other Whistling Duck, upon
the plains, in herbage, generally far from water. Has no downi.

Etj(/s. — Clutch, 10 to 12 probably; roundish in fonn ; texture of
shell fine ; svu-face glossy ; colour, a light creamy outer-coating, on being
removed reveals a lighter coloiired shell. Occasionally specimens are
stained, or minutely spotted with light brown. Dimensions in inches :
(1) 1-94 X 1-54, (2) 1-93 x 1-54, (3) 1-97 x 1-55, (4) 1-96 x 1-56. *

Observations. — The Eyton or Plumed Whistling Duck is a some^
what lighter coloured bird than the other species, with flesh-coloiu'ed
feet, and with the ornamental flank plumes more lengthened, and is
peculiar to Australia (being more numerous in tlie north) and Tasmania.
Straggler., arc said to have reached New Zealand. I believe this interest-
ing Duck Ls one of the most numerous in the Gulf of Carpentaria distiict,
where nests aie often fovmd, invariably on the ground in herbage, and
in some instances far from water, out on the plains.

Mr. S. WTiite informed Gould that he found a nest of this species in
a log. He (Mr. White) was not certain as to the complement of eggs
laid by this Whistling Duck, but he learned from the aborigines that
eight or ten were laid, mostly in the sand-hills at Cooper's Creek. I was
fortunate in obtaining, from the Adelaide Museum, a pair of eggs from
a clutch of ten that were collected on the Adelaide River, May, 1891,
during the overland journey of Governor Kintore's party.

Mr. G. A. Keartland's testimony concerning these fine Ducks in the
North-west is that : — " The open plains near the Fitzroy River appear
to be a stronghold of this species. Whilst travelling at night near Noon-

* Half a set taken 16/3/98. Nicholson river, North Queensland, measures
(i) 194 X 1-52, (2) i-g X 1-5, (3) i-g X 1-4, (4) 1-88 x 144.

1028 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

koombah, we frequonth' distiu-bcd them in thousands as they were
feeding amongst thr diy gi-ass, probably on the seed. Towards moniing
they return, to the water, and after a short bath repair to the shelter
of the bushes on the maagin. These birds lie so close together when
sleeping that seven or eight are often seciu-ed at one discharge. On
several occasions I killed birds of the two species (eytnni and vmjanx)
at the one shot. Both species breed very freely in the coarse gi-ass
near Mount Campbell, and the natives in that neighbourhood make sad
havoc amongst their eggs."

Mr. A. J. North says that for the opportunity of examining and
describing the eggs of Eyton Tree Duck, ho was indebted to an ardent
sportsman, who found them when out shooting on the Macquarie
Marshes on the 23rd September, 1893 (then close season). Mr. North
proceeds to state : — " In the long caaie-gi'ass, about one-third of a mile
from an aaiarbranch of the Macquarie River, lie (his correspondent)
flushed one of these birds, which he quickly fired at, and it fell. As he
moved foi-ward to pick it up he almost stepped on the nest, which was
built at the side of a tussock of cane-grass. It was a slight hollow in
the soil, lined only with short pieces of cane-gi"ass, and contained nine
fresh eggs. Evidently the Ducks had jvist begim to lay, for, although
twelve of them were obtained, only one more nest was found tliat day,
which was similarly constracted, and had two fresh eggs in it. Later on,
in the same locality, another nest was found containing seven fresh eggs.
From these nests the Ducks had made nms or tracks through the long
grass to the water's edge. All the eggs when found were immaculate,
and entirely free from the usual feet marks of the female, or stains of
any kind. Two average eggs from the set of nine are oval in form,
tapering somewhat shai-ply towards the smaller end, and are •ompara-
tivcly small for the size of the bird. In colour they are milk-white,
with an almost imperceptible tinge of cream ; smooth in texture, and
liaving a. slight satiny lustre. The shell is thick and exceedingly hard,
and the finder of the nests compared it to flint when he was engaged in
drilHng the eggs. Length : (A) 1-92 x 1-36 inches, (B) 1-88 x 1-36 inches.
These eggs may be easily distinguished from those of any member of the
family Anatince, in Australia, by their being almost pure white."

Dr. Ramsay's original description of the eggs of this species was from
a specimen found in the oviduct of a bird shot near Port Denison (Q.)
by Mr. Rainbird. It measured 1-95 x TS inches.

Dr. Wm. Macgillivray has favoured me with the following note: —
" The Whistling Ducks were well known to me in my old home in Queens-
land (Gulf of Caqientaria District), especially ei/toni, these latter being
more numerous than the other species up there, going in immense flocks
and generally keeping to themselves, mixing only with D. areuata when
they were present. With regard to their ogg^, I liavc a pair of ei/toni
which ai"e long-pointed ovals, answering to the description you gave of
those of the arrnala received from Mr. Barnard.* I may also add a

* It is just possible there may have been a transposition somehow in describing
the e(jg.s of the two species. Mr. Jackson kindly sent me a pair as tWi'iiiis (inciiala)
which entirely differed from those received from Mr. R.irnard and rcjombled
those of eytoni which I obtained from the Adelaide Museum. Furllicr remarks
will prove which "Whistler " lays the peculiarly pointed eggs that I have seen in
several collections.

A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1029

word of praise of D. tijtoni, and that is, their flesh is very good catiug;'
Tho last supper poor Gilbert ever ate was ou Plxuiied Whistliug
Ducks, the uiglit he was so suddenly aad treaeherously miudered by
blacks at oue of Leicliliardt's camps.

749. — Tadokna radjaii, Gaiuot. — (583)
WHITE-HEADED SHIELDRAKE.

Figure. — Gould ; Biids of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 8.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 175.

Previous Description of E,i;gs. — North : Proc. Linn. Soc., N.S. Wales,
vol. ii., and ser., p. 446 {1SS7).

Geoyraphical Distribution. — North-wtst Australia, Northern Tem-
tory, and Queensland ; also New Guinea and Moluccas.

Xt-st. — Within a hole or hollow spout of a tree, not necessarily near
water.

Eggs. — Clutch, probably about ten ; texture of shell fine ; siuiace
smooth ; colour, nch creamy-white. Dimensions in inches of a set of
five: (1) 2-2 x 1-63, (2) 2-2 x 1-59, (3) 2-2 x 1-58, (4) 2-17 x 1-58,
(5) 2-13 X 1-61. (North.)

Observations. — This splendid and conspicuous Shieldrake is an inhabi-
tant of the lakss and lagoons of tropical Australia. Its flocks are
sometimes numerous, especially in the North-west, during the rainy
season. But they are generally found in pail's or in flocks of from four
to eight. If shot at and distiu'bed, they will retiuTi to the same spot
during the night.

Persons who have observed them perched say it is a singular sight to
see a number of thess beautiful birds, with snowy heads and necks —
hence the very apt name. White-headed Shieldrake. Sometimes the
bii'd is locally known as the Bm'dekin Duck.

Dr. Ramsay found this species breeding on the Bvuiiett River,
Queensland, dm-ing November, December, and Januaiy, 1873-4, but
luifortimatoly he was unable to procvu'e eggs.

Mr. North has described five eggs taken from the hollow branch of
a tree. The date, except the year (1875) and the locality are not
mentioned. In January (1897), a pair of adults and eleven newly-
hatched young ones were seen in the Margaret River (North-west). They
apparently came from a hollow spout of a eucalypt overhanging the water.

I030 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

750. — Casauca TADOKNoiDES, Jai'diue. — (584)
SHIELDRAKE, OR MOUNTAIN DUCK.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 7.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. .x.xvii., p. 185.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.
Wales, vol. vii., p. 58 (1882) ; Campbell : Southern .Science
Record (18S3) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 339 (18S9).

Gtoyruphical ^Distributiun. — New South Wales, Victoria, tSoutli,
West and North-west Austi'alia, and Tasmania.

Ne.-it. — Usually witlun a hollow spout of a tree, or hole of cliff,
generally bordering a stream, &e., but not unfrequently away from
water; occasionally the nest is constnicted of herbage upon the gi'ound.
The nesting place is furnished witJi a quantity of down intemiixed with
grass, the down being gi'ej'ish, each particle with a whitish centre but
with dark tips.

Effij.'i. — Clutch, ten to twelve usually, thirteen to seventeen rarely ;
roundish oval in shape ; smface comparatively fine, glossy or greasy to
the touch ; coloiu", hght creamy-white'. Dimensions in inches of a set
of eight : (1) 2-84 X 1-96, (2) 2-8 x 1-97, (3) 2-79 x 1-96, (4) 2-76 x 1-99,
(5) 2-76 X 1-9, (6) 2-75 x 1-97, (7) 2-74 x 1-96, (8) 2-7 x 1-96.

Observations. — As the fine Rajah Shieldrake inhabits the northern
half of AustraUa, so the splendid Chestuut-colom-ed Shieldrake, or more
commonly called Mountain Duck, belongs to the southern part, including
Tasmania. The Moimtain Duck is about 27 inches in total length. Tlie
sexes may be distinguished by the smaller size of the female, and Iter
markings not being so pronounced. Their food consists of small fish,
Crustacea, molluscs and such like, found in swamps, (tc.

The largest flock of Mountain Ducks I have seen contained about
forty birds, which were floating upon a remarkable salt lake in the
centre of Rottnest Island, West Australia. I approached near enooigh
to discern the shining dark-gi'een heads and necks of some of the birds.
The shooting season had not yet opened, which probably accounted for
the tamtuess of the birds. When the flock took flight for the far margin
of the lake, their pure white wing-coverts showed most conspicuously.

In Gould's day, Moiuitain Ducks used to breed annually on the
alluvial flats at Gawler, Soiith Australia, depositing their eggs in tlie
spouts of trees. In some parts of that State, I am told, the birds arrive
about August, and, after breeding, the old birds leave about November,
the young ones following at the end of summer or about Mairh. On
account of this nomadic instinct tliey are diflicnlt to retain as pets.
Strange (the collector) informed Gould that a nest is fonued of the
down plucked by the bird from its own breast, and that he had taken
thirteen eggs from a single nest. An old Duck-sliootcr tells me

iVESTS AND EGGS 01- AUHTRAUAN BIRDS. 103 1

that, although the Jloiuitaiu Duck usually bi-eeds ia trees, he has
sometimes seen uest« 011 the ground, while two instances of nests
being found on the gioiuid are mentioned in the Australian Musevmi's
■■ Descriptive Catxaloguc ' of nests and eggs.

For a complement of eggs to a nest 1 can go several higher than
the record of Mr. Siraiige. 1 saw a pair of birds that were captured when
young by Jlr. G. W. Warner, on Wharparilla, near Echuea. 'Ihey were
from a brood of fourteen, which Mr. Warner intercepted and carefidly
counted on the plains. There was no doubt in Mr. Wai-ner's mind that
the little fellows were one happy family, and not membei's of amalga-
mated broods. Interesting statements relative to the Mountain Duck
weix) made to me by Mr. and Mrs. John Macaulay, who were eye-
witnesses of the scene. There was a nest in a tall red giuii (Eucalyptus)
overhangirig the Collegen, Rivcriiia, on the opiwsite side of the creek to
their housu at Dimvegan. Towards the end of August, 1894, Mi', and
Mrs. Macaulay had their attention directed to the peculiar antics and
calling of a pair of Mountain Ducks, whch were on the water below the
tree. Presently they saw two Ducklijigs timible out of the hole, which
was fifty feet or more above the stream, their little wings acting like
par;ichutcs, and drop with a light splash into the water. They then
Killed beside their parents, apparently none the worse for their fii'st fall.
Shortly afterwards the others aloft jjerformed similar feats, until no
fewer than seventeen fell (the niunber being again counted after the
birds wei-e on the water). Tliey were piloted safely away down stream
by the old bu'ds — one swimming before and the other behind the precious
flock.

When Mr. and Mi-s. Macaulay were pointing out to me the exact
tree, a Teal came and lodged on the edge of the hole where the Movmtain
Duck's nest had bjen. It was, no doubt, prospecting for ai likely place
toideposit its own eggs. The date was 22nd September.

The question natvu'ally arisss. How do Mountain Ducks, or any Ducks
in fact, get their little ones out of the nesting hole when there is no
water iindenieath to break their fall? It is reasonable to suppose that
the yoimg are conveyed to the gi'oimd in the mouth of then parents.
On this important point I give the valuable testimony of an eye-witness,
who, writing to " The Australasian " under the nom de plume of " Nemo,"
states : — " On the morning of October 12th, 1899, I was riding tlrrough
the ranges at the head of Waratah Bay, It was just at the break of
dawn. I had pvdled up my hoise, and was watching the first rays of
light flashing upon the gi-anite peaks of Wilson's Promontory, when the
silence was suddenl)' broken by the hoarse croak of a Mountain Duck.
I was sinprised to hear it in such a place, and on looking round I saw
a bird come struggling backwards out of the hoUow limb of a tall gum
on the opposite side of the gorge. It tumbled from the limb to the
gromid. fluttering in it»s downward course as though it were shot. Im-
mediately it reached the foot of the tree it darted off, flying low along
tops of the heather, and disappeared in the dark shadows of the forest.
I got off any hoi-se and approached the tree. As I drew near, a second
Duck, whicli I had not seen, rose from the top of a neighbouring tree
and circled roimd me for a few minutes, and then flew off out of sight.

1032 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

I resolved to watch the tree for a time, and concealed myself
imder a fallen log. After waiting for about an horn-, the two bu-ds
returned and alighted on a tree close by. They sat quietly surveying
the suiToundiugs for a considerable time. Then one of them (the female,
I believe) flew to the hollow limb and disappeared into it. She came
out afterwards, di'agging a little Duckling, covered in yellow down and
streaked with a dark coloiu'. The old bird had seized the youngster
either by the tip of its head or the nape of the neck, holding it with the
extreme tip of her bill, aaid in this fasliion came tumbling and fluttering
down toi witliin a few inches of the gi-ound, when she dropped the chick,
and darted away as i had seen her do before. In about five minutes
she came back and repeated the performance. I thus saw her car-iy down
six chicks, and then both birds disappeared. I went and searched the
ferns and heath at the' foot of the tree, but could not find any of the
little ones. I again concealed myself, and after waiting a long time was
rewarded by seeing the old bird alight on a bare cattle-track, some fifty
yards from the tree. She uttered a few croaks, and in an instant her brood
of eight or nine little ones were round her ; she started off, waddling along
the track in the direction of the coast, which lay about a mile and
a half below, and the nearest lagoon or water-mai-shes were not less
than one or two niUes off, though the smToundiug hills were of a wet
and Ixiggy nature. In this pai-t of the State (Sovith Gippsland) the
Mountam Duck is seldom seen on the inland swamps, confining itself to
the bays and coast marshes, and they go a. gieat distance inland to
find suitable trees to nest in. I have often seen them away back in the
hazel country of Leougatlia., where they build in the tall hoUow spouts
of the black-butt gum."

Mr. Wm. Bateman, of Echuca, a good field observer, writing to me,
states that in August, 1893, he foimd a nest in a hollow box tree on Uie
plains. His attention was firet directed to the spot by seeing a
Mountain Duck fly round, pitch on a spout, and descend into the tree.
His brother immediately placed his hat over the hole to prevent the
bii'd from escaping. This precaution was not needed, because the bii-d
remained quietly on her nest, which was on the gi-ound, the tree being
hollow tO' its base. The bird was so tame tliat she suffered the tree
to be chopped and wedged open, and hei-self to be taken by hand off her
charge of ten eggs without a struggle.

The eggs in my collection arc from an luifinished or deserted clutch,
taken by my friend Mr. Robert Waljxile, fioni a liollow tree near Wood-
side, South Gippsland, October, 1887.

The Mountain Dutk is an early breeder, usually laying during July,
August, or September.

Young in down ai-e marked on tJie head, along the back and across
the wings, with dai'k grey tending to black, the rest of tlie upper sur-
face and underneatli parts being whitish.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1033

751. — Anas supeuciliosa, Gnielin. — (585)
BLACK DUCK.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, £ol., vol. vii., pi. 9.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 206.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs.—Go-a\d : Birds of Australia (1S4S),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 364 {1865) ; Potts : Trans. New
Zealand Inst., vol. ii., p. 72 (1870) ; Buller : Birds of New
Zealand (1873), vol. ii., p. 256 (1888); Ramsay: Proc. Linn.
Soc, N.S. Wales, 2nd ser., vol. i., p. 1152 (1SS6).

Gi<iijraphical Distributiun. — Whole of Australia and Tasmania;
also New Zealand, Polynesia, Timor, and Java.

yest. — As fi-equently placed in herbage upon the gi-ouud as m a
hole of a tree or stump, generally near water, but often at a distance
from it. Occasionally the deserted nest of a Raven, &c., is used. Duuen-
sions of a nest or hollow upon the gi-ound, about 7 inches across by 3 to
4 inches deep, which is encircled more or less vsdth fine gi-ass, a few
feathers, and chiefly down, the down being umber or olive-brown, each
particle whitish in the centre and light-coloured on the tips.

Eggs. — Clutch, ten to twelve usu;illy, fifteen maximiun ; elliptical in
shape ; te.Ktiu-e of shell comparatively fine ; surface glossy and gi-easy ;
colour, light greenish-white or light creamy-white, with a faint greenish
tinge. Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch : (1) 244 x 1-66,
(2) 2-36 X 1-65, (3) 2-33 x 1-62, (4) 2-33 x 1-62, (5) 2-32 x 1-65
(6) 2-32 X 1-64, (7) 2-31 x 166, (8) 2-3 x 162, (9) 2-3 x 1-62,
(10) 2-29 X 1-63, (11) 2-29 X 1-62, (12) 2-28 x 1-63.

Ohxervdtunii;. —No Duck is so familiarly known to Australians as the
common Black or Wild Duck* It may l^e found singly, in pairs, or in
teeming numbers on every creek, river, lagoon, or waterhole. It
extends its liabitat to regions beyond Australia, notably to Austro-
Malayan. parts and to the islands of Polynesia, while I possess a far south
note from Mr. J. R. Burton of it breeding on Macquarie Island, where
eggs were taken duiing November last year and a duckling was caught
by his dog.

To the naturalist, this Duck, with its beautiful bronze reflections on
the wings, is most interesting. With the sportsman and the epicure it
is an especial favourite.

Who has not enjoyed flight-shooting at night when Ducks have been
winging their way to the upper waters of shady creeks or to lonely
lagoons? Many are the plea-sant reminiscences I have of night and
day shooting. On a sultry afternoon in Riverina, if the shooter can
crawl on " all fours " under the cover of timber or scrub to the margin

' General colour, dark brown, with beautiful glossy-green on each wing ; eyes
and feet yellowish-brown ; bill, bluish lead-colour ; total length in inches, 24 ; wing,
10; tail, 4 ; bill, 2|; feet, i|.

1034 ^'£STS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

of a sequestered lagoon, he will often be rewarded by a sight that will
gladden his heart. There is a flock of fine Black Ducks. Most of them
are in repose, some are standing on logs preening their quills, some are
posed on one leg with head behind their wing, and a few in playful mood
are darting and diving and spraying water into the air. What a pity
to niai' the peace of such a pleasant pictiu'e ! In an instant, at the
discharge of the right ban-el of the gun, the scene changes into splashing,
quacking, and a burr of feathers. Two or tlu-ee birds tumble off the
log and straggle in the water, never more to rise, and ere their mates
get fairly away the left-hand ban-el brings down another brace. Soon
tho Ducks reach the far end of the long lagoon, and puffs of white smoke
appear from behind the line of lai'ge red gums, where the shooter's
companions have stationed themselves by arrangement. Completely
noni>lussed, the Ducks wheel, and some fall to the earth. When the
flock retm-ns past the lii-st shooter, they keep well out of gunshot
range, and, with a final wheel, flying high and very rapidly, they pass
up the river, or on tO' a distant lagoon.

I have been present at the finding of many Wild Ducks' nests.
As Gould ti-uly states, the Duck, in its choice of a breeding place, seems
to be influenced by circumstances. The first nest which I have distinct
recollections of finding contained twelve eggs. It was situated on the
ground, where we fluslied the Duck among the branches of a fallen tree
at a considerable distance from the nearest river (Goulbui-n) ; date, 4th
October, 1887. On the Mun-ay frontage, 2nd December, 1890, I found
a set of eleven eggs on the ground in a sUght hollow, encircled with a
light baud of grass and down. Another nest discovered the following
day among tliistles, about thirty paces from the river, contained
thirteen eggs, with a good warm circle of down about them. In a
subsequent season (6th November, 1892) a nest was pointed out to me
snugly liidden in tall gi-ass at the base of an orange tree in an orchard by
the river. The nest, with its ten eggs encircled in down, made the
subject of a photograph, which is here reproduced.

The most recent Wild Duck nesting I hnve enjoyed was in the com-
pany of Mr. J. Gabriel, when we wei-e the guests of the Messrs.
Macaulay Bros., Riverina, during the big September flood of 1894. We
found various Ducks la3ring in hollow trees. One nest of the Black
species was in the trunk of a red giun tree standing in a stream. The
entrance-hole was about nine feet above the water, and the clutch of
nine eggs was about three feet down tlie barrel in a quantity of down.
One of the eggs was abnormally largo, and contained a double yolk.
Another ne.st was similarly situated at the height of about twenty feet,
the eggs (also nine in number) partly inculiated, being about a foot
in from the entrance. The sitting bird, on being disturbed, flow out
and lodged for a moment on the water before flying down the creek.
Mr. Rod. Macaulay, at considerable inconvenience, was good enough to
swim into tho swirling creek, and climbed, almost naked, witli a basket
on his back, to botli of these awkwanliv-siluated nesting places in order
to cnricli our collections with the eggs. Two other Black D\u-ks' nests,
with incomplete sets, were seen in trees. In one ease the eggs were
exposed, being in a liollow at tlie (op of a tall stump, and the Ravens
took them.

!\/ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAX BIRDS. 1035

On the ISth September, wliile walking over a cotton-bush plain with
Ml'. Gabriel, in search of White-winged Wrens ( MahirusJ and Ycllow-
f routed Bush Chats (E ijlitliiaiiura), I Hushed a Duck from her cosy
nest on the gi'oiuid in the centre of a bush. The nest was some
distance from water, and contained eleven eggs.

Eggs are always suirounded by down, plucked probably from the
Duck's owni breast. When she first lays there is no down, but as laying
proceeds a quantity appears, and when the clutch is completed there
is usually quite a thick, clastic circle of wann down about the eggs.
This down, which is a natural protection for the eggs when the parent
is absent from the nest, retains it-s warmth for a considerable time.
Of all Ducks' nests, excepting the Pink-eared Duck, probably that of
the Black Duck is the most amply provided with down. Nests are
often foimd by obsen'ing particles of down adheiing to holes in trees.
I believe the Duck is not assisted or relieved (unless it be at night)
by the Drake in the task of incubation.

The question is frequently asked, How do Ducks that breed in trees
get their ducklings to the ground, seeing the young are removed to
water shortly after they are hatched? It is only common sense to
suppose that the young are conveyed in a very natural way, namely,
in the bill of the parent. Even aborigines tell you that. Unfortu-
nately, I have not been an eye-witness myself to the interesting
pert'omiance, but I can quote the statements of those who have.

" Nemo, " in writing to " The Australasian " from South Gippsland,
on June 4th, 1894, says: "I notice some of your readei-s still seem to
cling to the idea that the Black Duck carries its young on its back
from the tree to the ground. This is an error. With all due deference
to those bushmen who have seen the Duck fly from the tree to the
water with its brood on its back, I must say that after years of close
obser%'ation of birds, game in particular (having at one stage of my
existence to depend upon that knowledge to an extent for my living),
I can assert without hesitation that the Duck simply drags its young
ones out of the hole in the tree, and flops down to the giound. can-ying
the Uttle ones singly in her biU. When all are down she walks with
them to water. If some of those old bushmen will think for a moment
that tlie nest of the Mountain and Black Duck (when in trees) is
usually at the bottom of some deep, hollow spout or Umb, up and down
the inside of which the Duck has to scramble like a 'possum, they must
see the absm-dity of the bii-d getting out with her flock of young on her
back. Both the Swan and Duck, when floating on the lagoons, may be
seen with their little ones perched on their backs. Hence, no doubt,
originated the idea that they were thus can-ied from the trees."
"Nemo" further states that from his observations the Ducks caixy their
yoimg from the trees always in the early morning. It is known,
however, that Ducks with their young travel overland at night, thus
enabling them to avoid hm-tful birds of prey.

The late Mi-. Gilbert Bateman informed me that once, while out
shooting and waiting for Ducks, one appeared about fifty yards away
on the water, and called for her mate, which came; at the same
moment a yoimg one was seen. One of the biids flew away, and

1036

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

returned seven or eight times; each, time the youug brood increased by
one. Owing to the distance between Mr. Bateman and this interesting
family, he did not actually see the young brought in the biU of the
mother, but from circumstantial evidence he entertained no doubt that
such was a iaat. Mr. Bateman said the speed at which the bird
arrived, not to mention her dodging movements, while passing between
the trees, was such that no duckling could possibly have retained hold
on her back.

Mr. George Warner (Echuca) recollects many years ago — about the
end of the " sixties " — seeing a Black Duck fly from the fork of a tree,
carrying a young one, gi'asping it in its bill across the chest and back,
and deposit in the water of a swamp near. Mr. Warner and another
person, who accompanied him, remained quiet, and were rewarded by
seeing the performance repeated six or seven times. When the obser-
vers showed themselves the old Du.ck sounded a waaning note, which
caused the brood, young as it was, to instantly swim to covert, while
the old bird flew around in a soUcitous manner.

It would appear that the Ducks instinctively know that if water is
below the nesting trees, they need not be careful about canyiug the
young down, but may simply throw them out. Captain F. C. Hansen,
master for many years of tlie inland river steamers, and a great lover
of birds, who was accidentally killed while attending to the loading of
the " Maggie," at the Echuca. Wharf, on the 9th of July, 1897, gave me
a very gi-aphic account how he saw young Black Ducks taken out of
a tree. Captain Hansen and his wife were sitting in a boat on the
back waters of the Darling River, and chanced to see a Duck thi-owing her
youug from a heiglit of ten or fifteen feet into the water, where the
Drake was keeping the little ones together. When the mother dragged
a duckling from the hole, she did so emerging tail first, and, balancing
herself at the entrance, she jerked her head sideways, throwing the
yoimgster, as the captain said, " clean overboard."

Refening to Black Ducks laying in the stick-made nests of other
birds, I have a note from Mr. Tom Musgrove, who, on the Murray
Plains, near Whai-parilla, fomid tlu-ee clutches of Ducks' eggs in the
old nest of Ravens. One instance in particular he remembLis, in the
season 1893, when he counted no fewer than foui-teen eggs, a " record "
clutch, in a Raven's nest. A correspondent in " The Australasian "
stated that about the beginning of September, 1893, he flushed a Black
Dvick from the large covered-in nest of the Babbler ( Pumat(irhinux),
which was situated in a she-oak (Caauarina ), about nine miles away
from water. Climbing to the nest he found it contained nine fresh
eggs. Some Ducks liave the habit of concealing their eggs before
leaving the nest. Mr. G. H. Morton noticed on more than one accasion
that a Black Duck had covered its clutch with eucalypt leaves.

Tlio breeding season for the Black Duck in the more southern part of
Australia is usually from August to December, sometimes as early as
June, as the following note from Mr. R. J. Dalton, Paroo district, New
South Wales, proves. Writuig in June, 1894, lie says: "Quantities of
Ducks eggs arc now on tile Cuttaburra, which is flooded." On the
other hand, it is not an uncommon event to find Ducks' eggs at

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1037

Christmas and New Year, especially in Gippslaud, while Captain
Doveton, a sportsnrin, told mc that when shooting on the 28th April,
1888, he saw young just able to fly. Mr. Isaac Batcy gives an instance
of Ducks breeding late in Rivcrina, where there wa.s a tremendous rain-
fall during the month of January. I860 or 1861. Ducks came, appar-
ently from the coast, commenced to breed, and young wei-c hatched in
April, if not sooner. Mr. Batey remarks, by the way, that this incident
shows how wonderful it is that the breeding time of these birds can be
hastened or delayed, according to circumstances, i.e., the rainfall.
Aprnpni: of this, Mr. R. J. Dalton informs me that after a good rainfall
on the Paroo. New South Wales, in February, 1898, several clutches
of Ducks' eggs were observed at the end of April.

Naturally, in Tropical Australia, the rainy summer season there
regulates the breeding Ducks, which lay mostly during January, Fcb-
iiiary, and March.

Although the fact is not established, it is probable the Black Duck
rears two broods diuing a season.

Young in down are brown on the upper surface, darkest on the
crown of the head, and with two stripes along each cheek ; under surface
dirtv vcllow.

752. — Nettion c.\staneum, Eyton. — (586)
Anas jntnctatn, Cuvier.

TEAL.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 11.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 252.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883), also Nests and Eggs Austn. Birds, pi. 3, fig. 586 (1883) ;
North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 341 (1889).

Geographical Distrihufinn. — Australia in general and Tasmania;
also accidental to Java and Celebes.

Nest. — Usually in a hollow tree, but occasionally on the ground in
grass or other herbage in the vicinity of water; furnished with a plen-
tiful supply of down. Should the nest be on the ground, fine grass is
sometimes intermixed with the fuscous-coloured down, each particle
whitish in the centre, and with light coloured tips. Apparently sUghtly
darker than the nest-downi of the Grey Teal. Dimensions : inside,
.5 inches acro.ss by 2h inches deep.

EffffS. — Clutch, nine to ten usually, tlurteen maximum ; elliptical in
shape; textiu-e of shell fine; surface glossy and greasy; colour, rich
cream. Dimen.sions in inches of odd examples: (1) 2-04 x 1-5,
(2) 1-9 X 1-4,5; of four from a set: (1) 2-14 x 1-5, (2)' 2-1 x 1-49
(.3) 2-09 X 1-52, (4) 2-08 X 1-48.

1038

.VESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Ohxervationx. — The Teal is a pretty Little Duck, especially the male
of the Chestnut-breasted variety, with its rich, reddish-brown coat,
enhanced by the beautifid deep bronzy-green head and neck, and rubv-
coloui'ed eyes. This bird is known to the shooter as the Mountain Teal.

The Chestnut-breasted Teal (N . castaneum), although it is sup-
posed to range throughout Australia, is, for the most part, a southern
bird,* and it is partial to watei-s, salt and fresh, on or near the coast^ —
such as it finds in Gippsland, on some of the islands in Bass Strait, and
in Tasmania. Five Chestnut Teal were procured on King Island by
the Field Naturalists' Club expedition in November, 1887, the males
being in full nuptial plumage. The birds took readily to the sea, not-
withstanding their fresh water proclivities.

I like reading old-time memories, especially when birds are men-
tioned. Here is one by Mr. Isaac Batey, of Sunbun'. taken from
" Tlie Australasian " : — " The lake-like swamps on the Melbourne side of
Melton were a great Teal shooting groimd, and talking of them recalls
my recollections of the year 1853. The autumn and early part of the
winter of that season were unusually wet, cold, and stonny, which had
the effect of causing Ducks of nearly even* known species to locate
themselves in myriads all over this quarter. Tlic creeks, cot alone,
were fidl of them, but the forest and the plain, wherever there was a
pool of water, had its bunch of Teal or other Ducks. S W. and E. Page
pioneers of 1835, told us that they never remembered such an irruption
of water fowl in their eighteen years' experience." I may be allowed
to add, never has there been such an exceptional number of Ducks in
the locality since. Two Teals' nests came under Gould's observation,
one in December, 1839, when he flushed a female of the Chestnut-
breasted variety from a nest among herbage on Green Island,
D'Entrecasteaux's Channel ; the other, probably that of a Grey Teal,
was found in October, 1840, in a hole near the top of a large tree
growing on the flats about Aberdeen, on the Upper Himter. New South
Wales. In both instances the eggs were nine in number. It is some-
what strange that Gould omitted to describe them.

The eggs of the Chestnut variety, or so-called Mountain Teal, I first
described in 1882, were secured from a clutch from which a bird in
full nuptial plumage was flushed.

Mr. D. Le Souef found Chestnut-breasted Teal niunerous at Malla-
coota Inlet, where he noticed them breeding in November, 1895.

The breeding season lasts from June to December. With regard
to second broods, Mr. Wm. Morton, Mt. Wallace (Vict."), paid particular
attention to a bird in his vicinity. She hatched her fii-st brood about
tho 14th August, and laid again about the 7tli October. Tiu^ fii-st brood
was able to flv about the 21st October.

' However Mr. T. Carler has noticed it as far north as the North-west Cape,
where he found a bird with younp;, apparently reared in the salt water among
mangroves. Date, July, igoo

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1039

753. — Nettion gibdeuifrons, Miiller.
GREY TEAL.

Figure— Cat. Birds Brit. Mus.. vol. xxvii., pi. 2, fig. 2.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 254.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Hume : Nests and Eggs Indian Birds
(1875), also (Dates' ed.) vol. iii., p. 290 (1890) ; Campbell :
Southern Science Record (1883) ; Ramsay : Proc. Linn. Soc,
N.S. Wales, 2nd ser., vol. i., p. 1151 (18S6) ; North: Austn.
Mus. Cat., p. 342 (18S9).

Geognipliinil Distrihiitlnii. — Australia in general and Tasmania;
also New Zealand, New Guinea, Timor, Java, Celebes, Flores, and
Suraba.

.Vf^■^ — Usuallv a hole or hollow spout of a tree, furnished with a
quantity of down, but sometimes situated upon the ground in herbage,
in the vicinity of water, but often, as in the case of the Black Duck,
at a distance from that element. Nest-down, greyish-brown, each
particle whitish in the centre, with light-coloured tips.

Eggs. — Clutch, nine to twelve usually, a record of eighteen ; elliptical
in shape ; texture of shell fine ; sui-face glossy and greasy ; colour, light
creamy-white. Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch : (1) TOG x 1-39,
(2) 1-94 X 1-4, (3) 1-92 x 1-37, (4) 1-9 x 1-4, (5) 1-9 x 1-37, (6) 1-89 x 1-38,
(7) 1-89 X 1-37, (8) 1-87 x 1-39, (9) 1-87 x 1-36, (10) 1-86 x 1-35,
(11) 1-84 x 1-34.

Observafion.s. — The Grey Teal (X. gibherifroih?) has a more exten-
sive habitat than the Chestnut-breasted, ranging from Austro-Malayan
regions do\vn through Aiistralia to New Zealand, even to Macquarie
Island.

Field obsei-vers and collectors now have no doubt alx)ut the exis-
tence of this second variety of Teal in Au.stralia. Some systematists
appear to entertain a doubt. Count Salvadori, who classified the
Anseres in the British Museum " Catalogue," referring to the Grey
Teal, says : " Tliis species is absoluteh' similar to the supposed female
of N. casfaneum, both in its colour and dimensions, so that I am
utterl)' imable to distinguish it ; still it seems quite certain that they
ara not identical, as the birds in pliunage of N. gibherifrons have bred
and, perhaps, are still breeding, in the Zoological Gardens of London.
. We must wait for additional information in order to settle
the question of the specific differences between T. casfaneum and
X. gihherifrons."

Mr. G. A. Keartland, having weighed two species of Teal in the
flesh, has kindly furnished me with the average results : — Chestnut
Teal — male, 1 lb. 9 oz. ; female, 1 lb. 8 oz. Grey Teal, male 1 lb, 2 oz. ;
female, 1 lb. 1 oz. This is evidence that seems to speak for itself. The
Count could find no difference between the females. According to the
above figures there is nearly a third difference in^the weights.

1040

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

At the time of the visit of Mr. J. Gabriel and myself to Riverina,
duiing the big flood of September, 1894, several Grey Teals' nests were
found, in eveiy instance in hollow trees. We were fortunately situated
for our work in being the guests of Mrs. Macaulay and her daughters,
who lived on the Ooroonong Creek, near Moulamein. Miss Marguerite
was used to following her brothers over the marshy meadows Snipe
shooting. When she ascertained that I required Teal for critical
examination, she suggested that, in order to make sure of our getting
the birds, she might be pennitted to take ujj a position at one end of
the swamp, while I took the other. The lady clcvoi-ly shot birds on
the wing, and retrieved them herself. We had no difficulty in securing
three and a-half brace of Teal.

During a drive through tracts of flooded countiy we discovered two
Teals' nests. When I was out with the brothers forcUng a billabong,
a bird was observed to flush fiom the hollow of a spouted limb of an
overhanging dead tree. Standing upon the seat of the buggy, we could
just discern eleven creamy-white eggs within the hollow. Tliey were
siurounded by an elastic circle of down. The date was 8th October,
1894. It is somewhat remarkable that the down collected from this
nest retained its wannth in our collecting basket for two or three hours
afterwards. A Teal was obsei-ved to fly from a low hollow tree standing
in a swamp. This nest contained nine eggs, fresh. The dead stump
standing in its weird surroundings, my companion in the act of taking
the eggs, and the buggy, with its fair occupants, waiting in the back-
ground, yielded a good picture for the camera, with the title, " Taking
a Teal's Nesfc." (See illustration.) Date, 17th October, 1894.

We had the good fortune to find a nest containing the maximum
complement, twelve eggs, which were taken from a dead tree near the
centre of a great flooded expanse. Tliis nest Mr. Gabriel and I dis-
covered by flushing the bird when rowing our flatty through the timber.
Tlicse flooded overflows are rendered dreary by rea-son of the dead rang
timber, with its thousands upon thousands of leafles twigs cutting tlie
clear blue sky all round. Here and there a smooth-barked living red
gum indicates the permanent channel of the stream, and croaking frogs
and chirjjing insects are everywhere heard. Another Teal's nest was
taken, but several seen could not be reached. A fifth clutch, containing
nine eggs, was presented to us bv a drover.

Teal sometimes feign lameness in order to divert attention from
their eggs or young. It is probable that Teal convey their young to
the ground in the same manner as Black and other Ducks. Mr. Wm.
Batcman, of Echuca, desciibcd to me a curious incident. Ho was in
his boat. Duck shooting on Kow Swamp, when he saw nine downy young
Teal tumble tail over head about thirty feet from a hollow .spouting
limb of a red gum into the water. They were not hiu-t in the least by
their fall. They immediately bunched themselves together, so that a
hat might have covered the lot. The strangest part of the affair was
that the parents were nowhere to be seen ; possibly they had been shot
or frightened away by shooting.

Mr. Leslie Cameron, Grassmere, Riverina, lias kindly sent me this
interesting note : " Tlu-ec or four yeai's ago. when tlie flood waters were

W

z

<

O

z

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTKACIAN BIRDS. 104 1

out here, and good grass gi'ew in the mallee, Ducks used to lay there,
as well as in the swamps. One day I saw two Teal flying from the
malleo to a swamp. Both birds were carrying a young one in their bill.
After safely dropping tlie yoimg, one old bird stopped to look after
them, wliilc the other returned for the balance of the brood, biiuging
one at a time. I have taken as many as eighteen eggs from a Teal's
nest.* I have also taken a SpoonbiLl (Shoveller) Duck's nest in one part
of a tree, while in another limb a Teal was hatching at the same time."

The principal breeding season for the Grey Teal is from August to
November, but, as with other Ducks, the time varies according to locali-
ties and wet seasons, as the following incidents prove ; Mr. H. C.
Burkitt, at Cooper's Creek, 25th March, 1887, took Teal's eggs from a
stick nest in a polygonum bush. On the 10th April, Mr. Arthiu*
Bradlv took ten Teals eggs from a hollow box-tree in a swamp near
Nai'andera, New South Wales. Eight eggs were taken from a nest near
the coast, Rockhampton, Queensland, by Mr. Charles Barnard, June,
1887. At the opposite side of the Continent Mr. Tom Carter writes
me he has seen Teals' nests duiing July, while diuing the Calvert
Expedition fresh eggs of the Teal were taken from hollow trees at the
Fitzroy River diuiug January and February — the rainy season.

It is probable that two broods are reared in one season.

This Teal has a general brownish, mottled plumage. On its wings
is a bright, bronzy patch, divided by a stripe of white ; eyes, hazel ;
bill and feet, bluish lead-colour; total length in inches, 17; wing, 8;
tail, 4 ; feet, 1\.

In shooting and other circles keen interest was taken in 1897 in the
seizure bj' the authorities of a large quantity of frozen game birds. Of
Teal and other Ducks 7,655 were found stored in the various freezing
chambers in Melbourne and suburbs. Section 7 of the Game Act for
Victoria provides that " if any person shall buy, sell, or knowingly have
in his possession, house, or control any native game " within the pro-
hibited season, he shall be liable to a penalty. There was some doubt
about the " possession." Some legal authorities constmed it to mean
possession of native game killed in Victoria during the close season
only, therefore, as the seized birds were admitted to have been shot
during the open season, and were merely stored for commercial purposes,
the alleged transgressors received the benefit of the doubt, and pro-
ceedings were stayed. From a. naturalist's point of view, which is
supported by several sound lawyers, it is contended that the Game Act
was created for the protection of the birds, and that on a given date
bujang, selling, and traffic of any Irind with the birds is to cease for a
period in each year. It was not expected that enough birds would be
slaughtered during the open season to satisfy the demand throughout
the whole year. " Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." If such
a state of things be allowed to continue there will shortly be no Ducks
to shoot at any time. No doubt the Act as it stands will be amended.

Tlie close season for Ducks of all kinds in Victoiia is from the 1st
August to 20th December; in New South Wales, from 1st September

' May have been laid by iivo females, — .\.T.C.

66

I0^2 A'ESrS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

to end of Febniaiy. Of course it is a close season for their eggs also,
and I maj' here explain with regard to the nests taken by myself, I liad
the necessary authority in writing from the Administrators of the Game
Act in Victoria and in New South Wales to collect eggs purely in the
interests of research.

754. — QuERQUEDULA ciEciA, Linnseus.
BLUE-WINGED OR GARGANEY TEAL.

Figure. — Gould ; Birds of Great Britain, vol. v., pi. 17.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 21)3.
Previous Descriftioiis of Eggs. — Various.

GriH/rapliical Dktrilutiiiii. — Victoria (accidental), Austro-Malayan
region, Africa, breeding in Europe and Asia.

Nest. — A mere depression in the ground in a meadow, or a grassy
mound in a morass, u.sually near water (Butler).

Egys. — Clutch, eight to twelve usually ; buff colour. Dimensions
in inches; 1-75 x 1-25 (Gould).

Obnervations. — Concerning the beauty and elegance of the nuptial
dress of the male of this little Duck, Goidd enthusiastically writes :
" The beautiful pencillings of its flanks, the lengthened and pointed fonn
of its scapularies, the delicacy of its grey tints, the cresccntic edging.^
of the feathers of its breast and the conspicuous white superciliary mark,
contrasted with the darker colouiing of the surrounding parts, render
it second to none of the Anatidm."

When the male tlirows off his handsome dress he assumes the more
sombre garb of the female.

A pair of these birds was exhibited by me at tlie Field Naturalists'
Club of Victoria, March, 1889. They were kindly lonned by JVlr.

Wm. Shaw, of Geelong, and were shot out of a flock of Australian
Teal at Lake Connewarre, Victoria, in March or April, 1896. Tlie
shooter who obtained them was of opinion that there wei-o more of
the strange species among the birds that got away. Previously the
Gargancy Teal had not been recorded nearer Australia tlinn the
Malayan Islands. It is hardly likely that these bii'ds had escaped from
confinement, which, by the way, they easily reconcile themselves to.

It is worthy of remark re the male being in nuptial dress about April,
that this month coiTesponds with tlie commencement of spring in
the northern latitudes, where the birds should have been, instead of
probably having lost their track and proceeded southward.

The Garganey is an animated and sportive creature, witli a cry
sounding like " ki'ec-krcc."

A/ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1043

755. — Spatcla clypkata, Liniiseus. — (589)

COMMON SHOVELLER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Great Britain, vol. v., pi. 14.
Reference.— Ca.i. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 306.
Previous Deicrifiions of Eggs.—'Le^%%e. : Birds of Ceylon, p. 1091
(iSSo); Campbell: Southern Science Record (18S3) ; others.

('•eographical Distribution. — South Queonslaud and New South
Wales (accidental) ; also many parts of both old and new worlds, breeding
as far north as latitude 68 deg.

]\'est. — Merely a hole scratched in the soil, lined with grass and a
quantity of down ; usually near water, amongst herbage or under a low
bush (Butler). The nest-down is small, dark-browi. with small, plainly-
defined whitish centres, without pale tips (Legge).

E<j(js. — Clutch, nine to twelve usually, fourteen maximrun ; roimdish
oval in shape, or elliptically inclined ; texture of shell somewhat
fine ; surf;R'e glossy and greasy ; coloiu-, dull greenish-white. Dimensions
in inches of a pair o- a clutch : (1) 2-0.'') x 1-4G, (2) 2-02 x 1-5.

0/i>!eriYifiiins. — Gould \vrite.s : — " Althougli I have nO' Australian skin
of this species to confinn the following remarks, I must ask my ornitho-
logical readers, both in Australia and Etu'opc, to take my word for the
occasional appearance of this bird in Australia. When I visited New
South Wales during the rainy season of 1839, all the depressed parts
of tlie land were filled with water, and the lagoons here, there, and every-
where, were tenanted by luuidreds of Ducks of various species, and
every now and tiien one, two, or more beatilifullv phimaged Shovellers
were seen amongst them ; but I did not succeed in shooting one of them,
and mu.st have left the matter in doubt as to the particular species if
the late Mr. Coxen, of Yarnindi, had not had the skin of a splendid
old male in his possession, which he had himself shot, and which, after
a careful examination, I foiuid to be identical with the Sj^utuln clyijentn
of Britain and the European Continent. Misfortune, I regret to say,
attended Mr. Coxen's specimen, for a. day or two afterwards a rat or
some other kind of vennin entered the room in which it was kept, ate
off its bill and legs, and so otherwise mutilated the sldn as to render
it useless. The debris would still have been saved had I not hoped and
felt assured of obtaining other examples with my gun ; this hope, how-
ever, was never realized.

" To this subject, therefore, I recommend the attention of those in
Australia, who will doubtless meet with the bird some /day when the
coimtry is subject to a partial inimdation. That this species should
extend its wanderings to AiLstralia is not a matter of siu-prise, when we
know that it has been found within the tropics, both in the old and
new worlds."

1044 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Gould's prognostications have not altogether been realized. So far
as I am aware there is not an Australian skin of the Common Shoveller,
with its bronzy-gi-een head and neck, white chest and conspicuous
chestnut abdomen, in any of oiu- local museums, but a correspondent
from Queensland sends a description of a strange Duck he shot near
Yandilla some years ago. From its " being similar to the Shoveller,
commonly called ' Bluewing,' but it had a snow-white ring round its
neck, and snow-white upper-half of its breast, the two joined," I ha,ve
not the slightest doubt that the Duck was the Common Shoveller,
of Europe.

756. — Spatula rhynchotis, Latham. — (588)
.S'. vfirie(/ata, Govild.

SHOVELLER.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 12.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 314.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Potts; Trans. New Zealand Inst., vol. iii,

p. 103 (1871); BuUer : Birds of New Zealand (1873). also vol. ii.

p. 272 (iS88); Ramsay: Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S. Wales, vol. vii.,

p 57(1882); Campbell: Southern Science Record (1883); North;

Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 343 (1889), also app- ii. (1890),

Geographical DiMrihutinn, — Australia, in general and Tasmania; also
New Zealand.

Nest. — ^Usually a slight hollow upon the ground, lined with grass,
a few feathei-s and down, and situated amongst lierbage — grass, thistles,
crops, &c., frequently away from water; rarely in a liollow tree. Ne.st-
down brov^fnish-grey, each particle lightcr-coloiu-ed on the tips, and whitish
in the centre.

Eggs. — Clutch, seven to nine usually, eleven maximum ; roimdish
oval in shape, or ellipticaUy inclined ; texture of shell fine ; sm^-
face glossy and greasy; colom-, light creamy-white, with a faint gi-ecnish
tinge. Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch; (1) 2-18 x 1-52,
(2) 2-15 X 1-5.5, (3) 2-13 x 1-52, (4) 2-1 x l-53,.(5) 2-09 x 1-5, (6) 2-08 x 1-53,
(7) 2-07 x 1-54, (8) 2-06 x 1-5, (9) 2-05 x 1-54.

Observations. — Tlic Shoveller, or the Bluewing of the sportsman, is
a most beautiful Duck, and probably the vnldest of its tribe. I wa.s
once close to a pair that pitched on a. rocky river pool, shaded by black
wattles (acacia). The male was lovely in his dark-brownish coat, with
the underneath parts rich, reddish-chestnut, oacli feather being touched
with black at the tip. The plumage generally was enhanced by the
beauty of the light-bluish patch on each shoulder, which is divided from
the glossy green secondaries by a white stripe. The eyes were yellowish,
which should match the fcot in colour, while the broad bill (Iience thi;
name Shoveller) was purplish-black. Tlic female was not so highly

ANSI'S AND LOGS Ol AU /HI KALIAN BIRDS. 1045

coloiu-ed, aud the blue ou tlie wiug was less biilliaut. If these Ducks
were a typiail pail', Gould's plates, wliich are usually excellent, are not
richly enough coloui-ed to do the birds justice.

The Shoveller riuiges ehielly over the southern half of the Coutiueut,
iiiclucLiug Tasmania. According to Count Salvadori, the handsome
i^puiula varujata (Gould) of New Zealand, reported to iiave been taken
in Tasmania, is merely a vai-iety of the Australian yhoveller. Colonel
Legge believes that the two varieties are simply " races " of the one
species.

Not only do " birds of a feather flock togcLner, " but Ducks
of different species fraternise on favoiu'ite feeding-giounds. I have wit-
nessed, as doubtless many other collectors have, Shovellers, Black and
other Ducks in one flock. Goidd, in 1839, records having seen ou the
flats between Aberdeen and Scoue, New South Wales, hundreds of
Shovellers, W' hite-eyed and Fink-eared Ducks in company. He writes :
— " I did not succeed in finding the breeding-place of this species, conse-
quently 1 am unable to give any account of its incubation, ntst, or eggs."

Tlie first nest I was fortunate enough to find of the Shoveller was
discovered by flushing a bird from tussock grass on WiUJip Island,
Westemport. The nest contained the full complement of nine eggs.
As they were jxirtly incubated, I took two only ; date, 18th October,
1880. On December 2nd, 1890, among thistles gi-owuig on an embank-
ment in a MuiTay swamp, I foiuid two, evidently the commencement
of a clutch. There was no down about the specimens, but the presence
of a few feathers of the Shoveller Duck was sufficient to identify the
pai-entage of the eggs.

During our trip to Riverina in September, 1894, Shovellers were
commencing to lay in the crops at Bannockbum. After oui- dcpartui'e
several nests were found. The ,bu-ds, when suddenly flushed, have an
objectionable practice of fouling the nest. This I have occasionally
noticed in the fase of the Black Duck. Whether tlus is the residt of
sudden fright, or it is done as a protection for the eggs, has not been
proved. Probably fright is the cause.

Although the Shoveller usually lays ou the ground, sometimes it
talves to hollow trees. Tlie late Captain F. C. Hansen, of the Miuray
steamer " Maggie," recollected seeing a Shoveller can-ying its young out
of a tree. He took particular notice, because he wasi aware of the pro-
chvities of this Duck for breeding on the gi'ound. He casually mentioned
that the season of 1887 was remarkable for the nvunber of Ducks of
various kinds in the MuiTay district.

In New Zealand, according to the late Mr. T. H. Potts, the comple-
ment for a clutch of Shoveller's eggs is ten.

The breeding season for the Australian bud is usually from August
to November.

Tlie Shoveller is not so heavy as the Black Duck — the male, with a
total length of 21^ inches, weighing 1 lb. 10 oz. ; the female, length 20
inches, 1 lb. 4 oz.

Here is another instance of Ducks covering thefi- egg-s before
temporanly leaving them. Mr. C. H. M'Lennan, wilting to me from
the mallee, Victona, says:— "There was a Bluewing's (Shoveller) nest

1046 A'ESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

on tlie giouiid, neai- the butfc of a bull-oak (Camariixi), uot far from my
camp. I oftt-n saw the old bii'd on her nest as I passed going round
my traps. Somi'times she flushed. She was sitting on nine eggs. One
morning, going past as usual, I did uot notice the Duck, so I went to
see if anything had happened. I could not find the nest for some time,
for it was splendidly covered over with the chy foliage of the bull-oak,
and other debris. There was a layer of down on top of the eggs, and
the things mentioned lay on it. The old bird must have been away,
looking for something to eat."

757. — Malacorhynchus membkanaceus, Latham. — (590)
PINK-EARED DUCK (WIDGEON).

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 13.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 319.

i'rcvious Deutiplions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Linn. See, N.S.
Wales, vol. vii., p. 58 (1SS2); North: Austn. Mus. Cat.,
app. ii (iSgo). .

Geuyrupldcal DUtrihution. — ^Australia in general and Tasmania.

Nest. — Usually the deserted nest of a Raven, Heron, itc., sometimes
on a thick fiat limb, profusely lined with down, light drab or greyish in
colovu', each particle white or lightest in the centre and on the tips.

Egijii. — Clutch, seven to nine usually ; oval in shape, or more com-
pressed at one end ; textiu'e of shell fine ; siu-face glossy ; colour, light
creainy-white. Dimensions in inches of a part of a set: (1) r92 x 1'4,
(2) 1-92 X 1-37, (3) 1-9 x 1-37, (4) 1-82 x 1-35, (5) 1-82 x 1-3.

Ohservaliuns. — This ver}' interesting and beautiful little species has
the length and breadth of Australia and Tasmania for its habititt, show-
ing preference for the fresh-water shallows of the ceutd-al and northern
parts of the continent.

In the Carpentaria district, Mr. Price Fletcher states it appears to
take tJio place of, the Teal. On the large lagoons of the Alexandra Creek,
which runs into the Leichhardt River, he found them exceedingly plenti-
ful, literally \n thousands. So nimierous were they, that, when camping
there, Mr. Fletcher's pai-ty for a week ate nothing but Pink-eared Diicks,
moniing, noon, and night. The Pink-eared Duck is by no means
numerous in soutliern parts, except when dry seasons in the north or in
the interior drive them towards the seaboard, as happenetl in the
cU'ought of 1896-7. That season, munbei-s of this little Duck foiuid their
way into the Melbourne market^s, and at the close of tho shooting season
nearly 1,500 were stored in the freezing-chambers.

The Pink-eand Duck is called by shooters and dealers. Widgeon.
It may be described a.s dark above and lighlrcolottred undenieatli, where
aie numerous dark-brown fascia;, th(? markings being nan-ow or broad

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1047

as the case may be. The somewhat bioad bill is gi'eeiiish or bluish-grey,
eyes reddish-biown, and feet vai-iable in coloui- from green to. yellowish-
brown. The bird takes its common name from a singailar oblong mark
of rose-pink behind the eye.

Mr. Price Fletcher remarked, that in Northern t^ueeu.'ilaud the
httlo Pink-eared Duck takes the place of the Teal. So it does in southern
parts on the tables of restam-ants, where it is always sold as Teal.

Gould records, " No one of the tribe that 1 have obsei-ved in a state
of uatiu-'.' presents a more elegant and graceful appearance tlian this
little Duck, which is generally seen in small companies of from six to
twenty m niunber swimming over the placid lagoons, and betraying so
little fear and shyness on the approach of man as to present a singidar
contrast in this respect to^the other members of the family."

Mr. Gregory Bateman, who loved the Boliemian life of a ti-apper
and sJiootin-, enjoyed exceptionally good opportimities of obseiVmg
Water Fowl, especially in Riverina. His obsei-vation regai-ding the
Pink-eared Duck was that it generally laid diu-iiig September or October,
or ;u-cording to the amoiiut of rain, depositing its egg's in the deserted
stick-nests of Ibises, Herons, &.O., winch old strvictures the Duck abim-
dantly lines with down. In fact, no other species of Duck's nest Mr.
Batemiin was acquainted with contained such an. abundance of down.
The eggs of this species kindly presented to me by Mr. Bateman were
taken from a set of nine, fomid in a White-fronted Heron's nest.

Dr. Ramsiiy, who first published a description of this Duck's nidifi-
catiou in the P.L.S. of New South Wales (1882), states: — " For a mem-
ber of the Aiiatida, this bird certainly selects the most unique spots ima-
ginable in which to- make its nests. The firet instance was brought under
my notice by Mi\ K. H. Bennett, of Yandembah, a most enterpiising
natm'alist, to whom the Australian Museum is indebted for several rare
specimens. Mr. Bennett informs me that, having occasion to visit
a nest of the White-fronted Heron ( Ardea nuvce-hollandicB), he was
much surprised *o find it mucli altered in appearance, and from the mass
of down which covei'ed the whole of the ^upper pait of the Heron's nest
the Duck flew off, lea\ang two eggs, which, with the nest, have been
transmitted to the Museum. The eggs, unfortunately, were broken in
transit. This deficiency, however, is supplied by specimens taken by
Mr. Whittell, from a similar mass of dark, slate-grey down, which was
placed on a flattened portion of a thick horizontal bough, overhanging
the water, on the bank of the Darling River, near Wilcanuia. In tins
instance the eggs were six in number, of a rich light-cream colour, rather
pointed ovals. Length : (A) 1-85 x 1-3 inches, (B) 1-82 x 1-3 inches.
The beautiful stiiicture above-mentioned, sent by Mr. Bennett, con-
sisted of the platfonn of sticks which formed the nest of the Heron,
being thickly covered with down, which fonned a rim foau- inches in
height. A large quantity of down was worked in among the sticks,
and covered the gi'eater part of the sides ; it closed over the eggs above
in an elastic ma.ss, quite hiding them."

There aa-e exhibited in the Australian Museum two interesting,
bulky bunches (one measiuing about ten or eleven inches across) of
hghtish-coloured down from the Pink-eared Ducks' nests, taken from the

1048 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BINDS.

deserted nests respectively of a Wliite-fronted Herou aud a Straw-
necked Ibis. Auotlier mass of down, found upon tlie gi'ound in the nest
of a Black-tailed Native Hen (Tribonyx), also exliibited, is so much
lighter in colour' than the other two as to lead one to siippose it might
belong to another species of Duck.

In the "Descriptive Catalogue" (No. 12) of that Institution, it is
stated : —

" The Tinstees of the Australian Museum have lately received from
Mr. K. H. Bennett several nests of the Pink-eared Duck, taken at
YandembaJi dimng 1889; one of them is placed on the deserted nest
of Geronticus spiiiicul/is, which was buUt on the top of a Polygonum
bush, about eighteen inches above the water. The nest of G. spiiiicuUis
is a flat stractvu-e composed of thorny sticks and twigs interlaced through
one another, aud measures eighteen inches in width by five inches in
height. That of M. memhranaccus is elliptical in fonu, and is composed
entirely of down plucked tVom the breast of the parent bird, and measures
twelve inches in width by five inches in height. To another nest

Mr. Bennett has attached the following note : — ' Taken at Yandembah,
26th August, 1889. The nest is placed on an old disiised nest of the
Trihunyx vcntralis, built on the lower dead horizontal stems of a Poly-
gonum bush about a foot above the water, and was screened from view
in a gi-eat measiu'e by the overhanging gi'een top of the bush. The eggs
were placed as now in tlie nest, and were completely covered by the
down.'

" Mr. Bennett also records finding a nest of this species on 30th July,
in a shght hollow of a stump standing in tlie water, containing six eggs
enveloped as usual in a mass of down, and another on 12th September,
in the disused nest of Uorone australi.^, on the branches of a tree aboxit
twelve or foiu'teen feet above the water."

The usual breeding season for the Pink-eared Duck in the soutlieni
part of the continent is from July or August tO' November.

A Wai'anga correspondent of the Rushworth (Victoria) newspaper
is responsible for the story of an " attack '' by Widgeons : — " As I was
going by Gunn's Swamp I was siuprised at my hat being knocked off,
and I thought it was a Magpie, whose nest I had approached too closely,
but imagine my astonishment when I looked up and saw that a pair of
Widgeon were darting at me, and I could not drive them off, and as they
began to make my head pretty sore, I cleared out as fast as my horse
could carry me and left them in possession. I suppose I must have been
very close to theiriucst, but I never heard of Ducks doing the like before,
as they are usually very timid birds."

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1049

758. — Stictonetta n^vosa, Gould. — (587)

FRECKLED DUCK.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 10.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 324.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Southern Science Record
(1883) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 340 (iSSg).

Geoyrayhicul Uistributioii. — Queeiislaud (Elinders Kivcr, 1896) New
South Wales, \'ictoria, South aud West (as far ujj as the North-west
Cape) Australia, aud lasmaiiia.

Xt.^t. — Similarly situated to those of most Ducks, in herbage upon
tlie ground.

E(jys — Clutch, teu to twelve probably ; long ellipse in form ; texture
of shell compai-atively iiue ; siuiiu-e glossy or greasy to the touch ; coloiu",
light greenish-white. Mos't resemble those of the Black Duck. Dimen-
sions Ln iuclies : 2-5 x TGC ; of two specimens, according to the Catalogiie
of the Australian Museum : (1) 2-3 x 1-7, (2) 2-26 x 1-65.

Observations.- — ^This veiy remarkable species of Duck would appear
to be partial to the southern portion of Australia. However, it has
been found in Queensland, and occasionally in Tasmania. Its plumage
is dark-brown, minutely and curiously freckled with white, the under
sui'facc being Hghter coloured. Some birds have a large patch of
rusty-brown on the chest. Eyes are light-brown, while bill and feel
are greenish-gi*ey. Shooters sometimes call the bird by the name of
the " Monkey " Duck. Why, I do not know.

The eggs of the Freckled Duck are exceedingly rare in collections.
A single egg in my possession was taken in the neighbourhood of
WaiTnambool. Tliere is also a single specimen in the Macleayan col-
lection, Sydney, wlule the Catalogs© of the Australian Museum
(1889) records the finding of a nest on the margin of a swamp, in the
Western district of Victoria, containing seven eggs. The date given is
October, 1868. There is probably a typogi\iphical error in the date.
One hardly supposes that such an astute authority as the author of
the " Catalogue of Nests and Eggs " would leave a rare egg undescribed
so long.

Freckled Ducks were more plentiful in the Melbourne markets
during the season 1896-7 than they had been for years.

Acting on the suggestion of Professor Alfred Newton (Cambridge),
that if I should come across a male Freckled Duck, his ti-achea would
be worth looking to to ascertain whether it has the bony " labyrinth "
at the forking of the broncliial tubes, and if so, whether it differs and
in what way, from that of other Drakes, I secured some of the birds,
which Mr. Ed. Degen has been kind enough to examine. He states :
" The trachea belonging to a male bird shows that the bony labyrinth,

1050

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BINDS.

which is asymmetrical m the common domestic Drake, is replaced by
a shght swelling of the iuferior laiyox only in the above-named speci-
men, and is, moreover, symmetrically developed.

" So far there is no difference with regard to the two sexes. Where
the male bird differs from the female is in the two expansions occurring
at irregular distances in the course of the trachea. The upper one is
about equidistant from the pharynx proper and tlie second, wliile the
lower one is placed somewhat higher from the iuferior pharynx tlian the
ftrst one is from the pharynx. These swellings when the trachea is
in situ, are ' compressed,' and, accordingly, when viewed from the front,
aie not conspicuous. Viewed in tlie profile, however, these coutoms
are plainly visible.

'■ The trachea of the female bird is more or less cylinchical throughout
its entire length."

Sub-family— F uLiGui.iNiE.

759. — Nyroca austkalis, Gould. — (j'JS)
WHITE-EYED DUCK (HARDHEAD).

I'igurc. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 16.

Refcrcncd. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 350.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay : Proc. Linn. Soc, N.S.
Wales, vol. vii., p. 59 (1882) ; Campbell : Southern Science
Record (18S3) ; North: Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 345 (1S89).

Gi-'oyrupliicul Dintn/iit/ion. — Australia in general and Ta.smania;
also New Zealand, Auckland Islands, New Caledonia, and Papuan
Islands, westward a,s far as Waigiou.

±Veiit. — Sometimes a hole or hollow sjjout of a tree, at other times
situated upon the ground in lierbage ; if the latter, the nesting place
is lined with gi'ass mixed with down and feathers. Nest-down, browiii.sli-
grey or greyish-brown, each particle being lighter coloured on the tips
and whitish in the centre.

AVi/s — Clutch, eleven to thirteen ; elliptical in shape ; texture of shell
comparatively line ; surface glossy and greasy ; colour, hght creamy-
white. Dimensions in inches of a pair: (1) 227 x 1-67, (2) 2-26 x 1-64.

Ohservntians. — This fine Duck is known by various vernacular names
— Hardhead, Brownliead, ikc. It is found throughout Australia and
Tasmania, and is probably nowhere more i)leutiful than in the river
readies, lagoons, and .sheltered backwaters of the southern parts of
the Continent. On the Gippsland lakes White-eyed Ducks are, or
were, exceedingly numerous. When a flock takes ilight across tiic water
the flasliing of the iiiuUitiKle ot the whiti' pinions is most conspicuous.

NESTS AAV i^GiJS OF AU ST KALIAN BIKDS. 105 I

In addition to the white across the wings, the under tiiil coverts are
white. Tlic eyes arc also white, hence the chstiuctive name of the bird.
The balauce of the phmiage in geuei-al is cliestuut or diirk-browu.

Tlie White-eyed Duck is an exceedingly swift llier. The hghtning
like rapidity with wliicli a flock sometimes tlies down stream, especially
with a good breeze behind, often bailies the best spoi-tsmau for a
successful shot.

Authenticated eggs of the VVhite-cyed Duck are rare in collections.
If Gould, as he states, had eggs of this species taken on the banks of the
Derwent, Tasmania, he did not describe them. Eggs were fii-st des-
cribed by Dr. Kamsay, 1882. The examples m my cabinet were from
a clutch (incompleted, probably) of seven, from which a bird was
Jluslied, and they were Uiken from a hollow tree, Riverina, by the late
Mr. Gdbert 13ateman. He also took two sets, each containing eleven
eggs, from box-trees (eucalypt). Several seasons Mr. Bateman observed
these Ducks used to breed during September or October at Eurola,
Kiverina. Tiie White-eyed Duck does not always lay in trees. I was
advised of a nest found on the groimd by some shooters on " ihe
Marsh," just north of Lake Bael Bael, V'ictoria. In December, 1894,
a friend of Mr. G. H. Morton, of jMurray Meadows, foimd a nest with
eight eggs of the White-eyed Duck on the ground.

Toucliing the number of eggs laid by this Duck, I have mentioned
two instances of eleven each, but Mr. Tom Musgrove, a rehable obser-
ver, recollects distinctly counting a young brood of tliirteen. In the
" Catalogue ' of the Australian Musemn it is officially stated that seven
to nine is the number of eggs for a sitting. It is left to some other
oologist to prove which statement is correct.

In concluding my general observations anent oui" edible Ducks,
I may bo allowed to remark that, when Ducks are about, open season
or not, it is very tempting to go shooting. Many persons, especially
those in the bush, go shooting on Simday, seemingly unaware that it
is an offence against the police statutes to cany a gun on that
day. W^ith regaixl to shooting in close season, it is to be hoped that
the people of Australia will see the wisdom of not " killing the Geese
that lay the golden eggs," or else, sooner or later, we shall be hedged
about with fierce enactments and objectionable g^m licenses for the
proper protection of birds, as in Canada and elsewhere. As has been
truly said, '' CiviUsed man is Nature's worst enemy."

Sub-family — ERisM.\TURiN.a;.

760. — Erismatuea australis, Gould. — (594)
BLUE-BILLED DUCK.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 17.
Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 451.
Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — (iould : Birds of Australia (1848),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 380 (1S65).

GtiHiraphical Di<trihiitv,n. — Victoi-ia, New South Wales (Riverina),
South and West Auslraha, and Tasmania (accidental).

1052

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Nest. — Not unlike that of a Musk Duck, well couccalcd in i...
herbage of a marsh or swamp, and hncd with grass and down.

Eggs. — Clutcli, fom- to five probably (two to nine or tun, Gould) ;
eUiptically inchned in shape ; textui-e of shell coarse ; sui-face verj'
sUghtly glossy and rough; colour, light greenish wliite. Dimensions in
inches of examples from two clutches : (1) 2-81 x 1-95, (2) 2-73 x 2-07,
(3) 2-66 X 1-9, (4) 2-59 X 1-84.

Observations. — This remarkable diving Diick, with its feeble Grebe-
like fhght and habit, has only been recorded for the southern part of
Australia, and one for Tasmania.* It usually frequents the lakes and
lagoons running parallel with the coast. It is found inland also, and
has been observed breeding in the Murray River district and Riverina.

The Blue-billed Drake wears a rich chestnut coat. The head is
dark, showing off the light blue-colom-ed bill. Underneath siu'face is
brownish-gTey, transversely marked with dark-brown. The whole of
the plumage of the female is dark-brown, transversely marked with
light-brown.

I received the scarce eggs of the Blue-billed Duck through the
instiiunentahty of Mr. G. H. Morton, of Murray Meadows, who ob-
tained them from shooters. Two nests were found about the middle
of December, 1893, in " The Marsh," noith of Lake Bael Bael. The
nests contained respectively three eggs (addled) and four eggs (fresh).

To his remarks on the Blue-billed Duck, Gould appended the state-
ment that the E. /eucocepluila of Africa laid eight eggs, which fact, he
asserts, confinns the assertion that the eggs of the Australian bird arc
from two to ten in number (surely a wide margin). He says this is
a remarkable circiunstance, seeing that the Musk Duck, which is neai'ly
allied to the Blue-billed Duck, only lays two. It certainly appears as
if Gould doubted his own statement that the Blue-billed Duck lays a
ma.ximum complement of ten eggs. I share his doubt, and have stated
the number as five. My principal reason for giving that figure is, that
several reputed Musk Ducks' nests containing five eggs have been
reported to me, which I believe are referable to the Blue-billed species.
The nests and eggs of these Ducks are similar, therefore a case of mis-
taken identity may have easily occun-cd. Moreover, I think it can be
proved that the Musk Duck never lays more than a pair or three eggs
at most.

BreecUng months, August to December.

* Three specimens were oblaiiied in iSg2.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN lURDS. 1053

761. — BizuRA LOBATA, Sliavv. — (595)

MUSK DUCK.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vii., pi. 18.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 452.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1848),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 38? (1S65) ; Ramsay : Ibis, p. 413,
pi. 8, fig. I (1867); Campbell: Proc. Roy. Soc, Victoria, p. 5
(i8go).

Geographical Distribution. — South Queensland, New South Wales,
Victoria, Soutli and West Australia, and Tasmania.

Nest. — A hollow in the ground, in rushes, grass, &c., on a bank or
knoll in a swamp, or in a short hollow stiuiip or log ; occasionally nishes
growing in water are trodden down and bent over so as to form a
covered nest; Uned wanuly with gi-ass, down, (fee. Dimensions, 5i
inches across by 3i inches deep. Ncst-downi light-grey, whitest in the
centre of each particle.

Eggs. — Clutch, two to three ; elliptical in shape, both ends some-
what pointed ; textiire of shell thick and coarse ; surface slightly glossy
and rough ; colour, a coating of dirty greenish-white or pale-olive, on
being removed, reveals a light gi'eenish-wlnto shell. Dimensions in
inches of a proper clutch : (1) 316 x 2-17, (2) 3-16 x 2-11, (3) 3-12 x 2-16.

Observations. — The habitat of this curious Duck ranges across the
southern half of Austraha, including Ta^smania and some of the islands
in Bass Strait.

The Musk Duck is found in the waters of sheltered bays, estuaries,
&c., as well as in the placid lagoons of the interior. Altogether, it is
a remarkable bird, and httle appears to be understood of its economy.
The colour is brownish-black, crossed by numerous narrow freckled bars
of bufly-white, eyes dark-brown, bill also dark, and legs leaden-colour.
The male is about twice the size of the female, and it is furnished with
a semi-circular pouch under the throat. Tliis appendage is not the
seat, as is popularly supposed, of the strong musky odour emitted by
the bird. The odour conies from the oil gland near the extremity of
the tail, and is .so powerful that even dogs will not retrieve the bird.
A skin will retain its musky smell for years. I once saw four fine male
Musk Ducks — a somewhat unusual consignment of cargo — which were
waiting removal from the Customs Examination Shed at the Victorian
Railways, Melboiune. Their chai-acteristic powerful scent filled the
whole place.

Although more than a pair of Musk Ducks is rarely seen at one time,
I have observed numbers together in the waters of Port Phillip, near
the eastern shore, notably at St. Kilda, MorcUalloc, and Dromana.
On a stormy evening it is pleasant to hear their whistle-hke notes borne
in on the wind. I imagine the birds occasionally come ashore at night.

1054

yESrS AND EGSS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

The note of the male, especially during the breeding season, is extra-
ordinary, and difficult to desciibc in words. Gould likened it to the
sound caused by a large drop of water falling to the bottom of a deep
well ; or it may be imitated by the sudden opening of one's lips. These
similes arc very good, if it be understood that the sound is loud, sharp,
and a hissing-like whistle. I have frequently watched the bird floating
on the surface of a lagoon, as well as on the sea, while it was making this
peculiar soimd. It seemingly makes the noise with considerable effort,
simultaneously giving a spasmodic kick with one or both its legs, which
causes a small wreath of water to be thrown up behind.*

Musk Ducks are clever divers, but they occasionally get caught in
nets set for fish. To diving they trust for their safety when danger
threatens. It is also the means of procuring food from the bottom of
murky swamps. The length of such dives I have variously timed from
t.liirty seconds to sixtj' seconds. It is .stated that an old bird can dive
with young ones on its back. I have heard it solemnly declared that
Musk Ducks can fly hke other Ducks. I could never force one to
flight, or do more than flap along the surface of the water when hard
pushed.

A lady con'o.spondent sc^nds the following interesting note : — " As
far back as 1849, when a girl, I crossed the River Murray from Adelaide
with my father and family. We crossed in a punt with Mr. Carter,
owner of Wellington, South Australia. We struck across for the
Coorong, and found a beautiful creek running for miles, and made our
home there. The locality was swampy, and the swamps were full of
Black Swans and every other kind of water bird. AVe made friends
with the Long Desert tribe, and every day in summer, unless wanted at
home, I was out in the swanip.s, shepherding sheep with two black gii'ls.
They taught me native names, and showed me where to look for nests.
They pronounced the name almost the same as tlie whistle of the bird,
' Sheerip.' I have foiuid many nests in clumps of cutting gi-ass. We
could tell bv a few dead blades of gi'ass on the top. I never saw more
than three eggs. Wlien the mother went out for food and water, the
eggs were left covered with down. Tliey can only dive. I never saw
one fly, and the natives tell me they never fly. The swamjis were
then covered with beautiful Black Swans (' Coonorwar ') and Mountain
Ducks ('Perner'), which built in giun trees. Peelech Peelech a Pa
was an island covered with Ducks, Water Hens, Turee, Teal Ducks,
' Nygrahe,' Native Companions, and ' Jerolyows.' The swamj^s are full
of a small fish called ' lap lap.' The blacks only counted as high as
tliree, and whenever we sa.w a Musk Duck's nest — never before October
— they would guess ' Wyiitook ' (1), or ' Boolach ' (2), but never
liigher than ' Boolach a Wyntook ' (3), so that makes me positive
their belief was in thi-ee. We never destroyed any nests. That wa.s in
the south-east disttHct of South Austra.lia, where A. L. Gordon made
his home for many years."

• It has been stated that the bird splashes the water with its wings. Bnt as
the bird makes a slight progressive movemnm each time, it is evidently performed
by the feet.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTHALIAN BIRDS. 1055

There is some doubt as to the number of eggs laid by the Musk
Duck. Gould, Riimsay, and otlifr authorities state that a pair usually
is laid. Both in Ea-steni aud Westeni Australia I have taken iiost-s
containing three eggs. Hushing tiic birds therefrom. Such excellent
field observers as Mr. A. E. Brent, the late Mr. Gilbert Bateman,
and Mr. William Bateman, assert that the maximum number of eggs
laid is five. I have recently received a letter from a Tasmanian cor-
respondent, who says : " I have found as many as five eggs in a Musk
Duck's nest, and t\vice I have found four." I feel confident that the
usual complement is not more than two or three eggs, and that the
sets of five found belong to annthor species of Duck, possibly the Blue-
billed — a bird that lays eggs like the Musk Duck's, but somewhat
smaller, or they may have been combination clutches. The bii'd, when
quitting her nest of her own accord, sometimes conceals the eggs by
covering them with down.

The nest I observed in Western Australia, containing three eggs,
was situated in a melaleuca (tea tree) swamp in the heart of the forest.
It was about two feet above the water, concealed in long herbage at
the side of a stump. Date, 1st November, 1889. I learnt that it was
usual in Western Australia to find three eggs in the nest of the Musk
Duck. Tlie other triplet I found was on a thistle-covered bank by a
Murray swamp in Riverina. The nesting place was nan-owcr than that
of the ordinai-y Black Duck, and it was wai-mly lined with gi'ass and
down. Date, 2nd December. 1890. In the same distiict, a season or
two subsequently, Mr. G. H. Morton took two Mii^k Ducks' nests with
each tiiree eggs, and identified the parents.

With regard to combination clutches, here is a curious illustration.
On the ,31st December, 1893, Mr. Morton flushed a Black Duck from
one Musk Duck's egg and seventeen Black Duck's eggs, while five
other eggs were scattered round the nest. All were fresh. Mr. Morton
hatched some of them under a domestic fowl.

The breeding months for the Miisk Duck are July to December.
Some importance may be attached to the description of the nest-
down of Ducks as an aid to identification of the species should the
parent be absent from her eggs. I regret I have been unable to des-
cribe more than I have done. However, I hope some of ovu- collectors
will shortly furnish us with complete descriptions of the nest-downi
from all species of Australian Ducks' nests.

My question in " The Australasia.n," 1897, " Can Musk Ducks fly?'' gave
rise to a considerable amoimt of correspondence fruitful of interesting
facts. I cannot do better than quote extracts from the evidence of
some of the observ'ers. Fii^st, there are those who have never seen
Musk Ducks fly. Mrs. Cornwall writes from Cudgegong, New South
Wales : " My experience of them is that they cannot. Wh^'ii they made
their first appearance in the backed-up waters of the Goulburn River
above the weir, a number of us went out in boats and chased them down
the river for sport; the Ducks would dive, and then would flap over
the surface of the water, in a pecuUar waddling manner. Not one of
them ever rose up. We got them down within 150 yards of the weir,
and the Ducks (there were about twenty of them) dived in all directions.

I0i;6 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

and so got past our boats into the back waters. Often and often have
we tried to make Musk Ducks fly by shooting at tliem, &c., but never
once succeeded."

" Teal " (Ballarat) writes : " Musk Ducks can no more be said to
actually fly than, say, flying-fish. Tliey simply skim the surface of the
water, flappmg their \vings, wlicn disturbed."

Mr. John G. Gray, Kentucky, New South Wales, writes : " I quite
agree with Mr. Campbell regarding the disinclination to fly the Musk
Duck shows. I have 'been shooting Ducks in Riverina, near Corowa,
on the MuiTay, for more than thirty years, and cannot remember
having ever seen one on the wing. Here tliey only frequent the deep
waters of dams on the creeks, and depend for safety on their diving
powers, which are extraordinary."

" C. M'L." (Wonga Lake) writes : " Having read all the correspon-
dence in ' The Australasian ' rr the Musk Duck, I thought I would tell
you my experience of it. I do not think that they can fly, for I have
met them travelling on foot from one lake to another, and I have nm
them down ; so I am sure if they could Gy they would not attempt to
walk over the heavy sandhills that are to be met between the different
lakes about these parts."

" H.O.," writing from Kongwak, via Jumbvmna, says : " I, as an
old bushman, was of opinion tliat they (Musk Ducks) could ; otherwise,
it seemed to me unaccountable how they could suddenly amvc at
swamps, &c., up country, newly-filled or filling by the first rains. From
wliat I saw a few days ago, I am now inclined to think that they
cannot fly. I was walking to a neighbour's, when there straddled and
fluttered in ungainly fashion acro.ss the main road a female Musk Duck
—I at fii'st thought wounded or fluttering from a. nest. But when she
gained the drain at the side of the road slie shot up and down it in
a tremendoits fuss at my approach. After some trouble I caught her,
and had my fingers viciously snapped. All the time I was examining
her legs and wings she had fast liold of my coat. I fomid nothing the
matter with either legs or wings. On letting her go, I flimg her a little
in the air, thinking she might fly with a ' fair start,' but she only plumped
into the drain without making an effort to fly. She ha<:l evidently come
across a marshy paddock, and was making for the river, about one
hundred yards distant."

On the other hand there are those persons who have seen Musk
Ducks fly.

Mr. W. H. Ford, F.G.S., whom I know to be a reliable field observer,
writing from Moolort, Victoria, after stating that on one occasion, when
on the Aird River, Cape Otway, ho forced a Musk Duck to flight, about
.300 yards, says: " In the winter of 1S93 T had a party down at AUflna
Bay Estate, and my brother, out after game one night at a swamp on
Cherry's property, shot a Musk Duck flying into the swamp from the
bay. He thought it was a Black Duck imtil shot, and then could not
believe it was only a Musk till brought to hght at camp. These are
the only two instances I know of Musk Ducks flpng."

Dr. H. Breton writes ; " My experience is they (Musk Ducks) can
fly, although they seldom resort to this mode of progi'cssion. I am

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BINDS. 10157

satisfied that when hiintod and firod at they never fly, but dive, and
woidd never be hit unless taken off their guard. I liave had repeated
shots at tliem on the billabongs, in New South Wales, ineffectually, as
their very keen siglit enables them to dive out of reach instantor on the
csplo-ion of a gun. Only once did I meet with sticcess. I bon-owed a
gun from a patient of mine and sauntered along the banks of the River
Mcrri, about four miles from Warrnainbool, towards Woolastou, when
suddenly I saw a Duck come fl}'ing round an elbow of the river, on the
opposite side. I fired and bagged, as I thought, a Black Duck, but
which, to my great disappointment, turned out to be a Musk Duck.
No doubt they fly for a spurt occasionallv, bvit never when shot at,
as their immunity is assured them by diving. They are every bit as
quick as the Diver in avoiding shot."

Mr. J. Cannody, writing from Urana, New South Wales, states :
" Two years ago I was at Colombo Ci'eck. and saw four Ducks fly down
on the water just in front of me. I fired and killed two. Congi-atu-
lating myself on having secured two Black Ducks, I drew them out of
the water, and was greatly surprised to find they were Musk Ducks, as,
up to then, I had shared in the belief that these birds do not fly. They
were flying strongly when I first observed them, and appeared to have
come from some distance down the creek."

" S. J.," writing from Adelaide Club, South Australia, says: " When
on a visit to Point Lowly lighthouse some few years since, I was shown
by one of the keepers the skin of a male bird which, he informed me,
had flown against and broken the glass around the lantern. This bird
must have been flying at a good height, and swiftly, to break such vei-y
thick glass."

Mr. Benjamin Culley recollects, in 1853, shooting a Musk Duck
flj'ing by night in Hobson's Bay. " Since then," he adds, " I have been
very familiar with the Musk Duck, both on the Murray lagoons and on
the dams in Riverina, and although I have shot one now and again
by error as it fluttered from the high banks of the river into the water,
I could onh' say that the effort to fly was the effect of surprise ;
therefore, I take it to mean that its power to do so may be always
present, but that its natirre is to fly either in the dark or moonlight.
I may say that the one referred to above flew with short and rapid
flaps, similar to a Magpie, when returning to roost at evening. With
us were Messrs. David Goodsir and Heniy Gale, both well known in
Melbourne afterwards."

I have purposely kept " T.A.G.'s ' (Yandilla, Queensland) communi-
cation to the last, because it appears to contain the solution of the
problem, namely, that Musk Ducks do not or rarely fly by day, but
do so occasionally by night. " I have only once seen one fly in day-
light here, and he flew past me and alighted within twenty yards of
me, and there was no doubt it was a Musk Duck.

" We have a small steam launch here, and used to have it on the

Broadwater for a time, and go out for moonlight excursions, and when

we came to the part where the Musk Ducks congi-egated, as the laimch

came up to them thev used to get up and fly, whereas in daytime

67

I0t;8 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

they would merely fluttei- along the top and dive. There is no doubt
they flew, as they used to get quite close before they started, so that
you could see them distinctly in the moonlight, and, besides, no other
kinds of Duck frequented that part.

" It seems to me that they do not, as a rule, fly in the day, because
they are heavy fliers, and cannot steer well or turn quickly, so they
know that the Hawks would soon have them, whereas at night they
are safe."

ORDER CASUARII.

FAMILY— DROM^ID^ : EMUS.

762. — Drom.t!us nov/e HOLLANDi^E, Latham. — (492)
EMU.

Figure. — Gould: Birds of Australia, fol., vol. vi., pi. i

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 586.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Gould : Birds of Australia (1S4S),
also Handbook, vol. ii., p. 203 (1865) ; Bennett : Gatherings of
a Naturalist, p. 218 {i860) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 292
(i88g) ; Campbell: Roy. Phvs. Soc, Edin., vol. xiii., p. 215
pi. 6 (1896).

Geographical Distrihiition. — Australia in general.

Nest. — Usually a flat bed or platform composed of grass or other
herbage plucked by the bird round about the site, and trampled down.
Sometimes bark, pieces of sticks, and leaves of trees are used, inter-
mingled with a few of the bird's own feathers. Shape generally oval,
about 4 feet hy 11 feet in size, and about 2 inches in thickness. Situa-
tion in open countr}', usually near the base of a tree or stump ; at other
limes in rank herbage or in a d;-y bod of a polygonum swamp. Some
authorities state that on the plains the eggs are deposited on the bare
earth, while in the Mallee country the nest is formed almost entirely
of strips of bark plucked from these trees by the bird. The nest or
bed is constructed or augmented as the laying and incubation of the
eggs proceed.

Er/fix. — Clutch, usual average nine, but varies from seven to
eighteen ; elliptical in shape, a few exceptions being more swollen
about the centre. The appearance of a collection of freshly-gathered
unblown specimens is very beautiful ; the surfaces are rough (not imlUce
.'^hagreen), with granulations of dark-green upon a shell of light metallic
or verdigris-green. In some clutches the gianulations are so closely
placed and flattened or squeezed down as to hide completely the inter-
stices of light-green. In such instances the eggs arc of n more unifonn

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1059

dark-green. The granules are slightly lustrous, but as incubation
proceeds become much darker and polished, while the interstices become
bluer or dingy in shade. Dimensions in inches of a normal clutch of
eight eggs : (1) .5-62 x 3-62, (2) 5-56 x 3-62, (3) 5-5 x 3-68, (4) 5-5 x 3-68,
(5) 5-5 X 3-62, (6) 5-43 x 3-68, (7) 5-31 x 3-5, (8) 5-06 x 3-31. The eggs
in this clutch arc somewhat long ellipses. No. 2 is much lighter

in colour, caused by the gi-auulations being less or more scattered over
the shell (an exception not unfrequently seen in a set, and probably
the last laid egg), while No. 8 is noticeably the smallest in the set.

Another clutch, of eight i-ather small but beautifid eggs, gives
average dimensions of o'Oo x 337 inches. A remai-kably rognlar-

sized set of twelve gives 5"22 x 3'59 inciies, while in a set of thirteen
exceedingly dark-gi-een specimens (as explained by reason of the
gi-anulations completely covering the lighter coloured part of the shell),
the average measiu'ements are 5-16 x 3'66 inches.

Weight of nine examples of various sizes selected promiscuously
when full : — -The smallest weighed 16| ounces, the heaviest 23 A ounces;
average of the nine barely 20.J oiuices. (Plate 27.)

Olixervatiuiis. — It is always a pleasant occupation to read, write, or
diffuse information about such a notable and noble creatvu'e as the
Emu. The " King of the Australian faima " the bird has been fitly
termed. Wliether seen in private reserves, parks, or in the open, the
Emu always arrests attention. Even the bushman, who has seen hmi-
dreds of Emus in the wilds, will always glance at the bird or remain
to admire its handsome eggs. A full-gi'own bird, when erect, stands
about 6 feet high. Its coat, at a distance, has more of the appear-
ance of hair than feathers, wliich are loose, and spring in pairs from
one shaft. Down the back there is a parting, where the hair-like plum-
age falls gracefully over on either side. Tlie colour- of the plumage
is an obscure gi-eyish-brown. On the head and neck the feathers are
short, and so tliinly placed that the purplish colouration of the skin
shows through them. The eyes are brownish and the bill black-
coloured. Tlie sexes are similar in appearance, but the male may be
distinguished by his usually larger size and darker colouration. It must
be noticeable how protective is the colouration of the Emu, the greyish
coat assimilating to the shade of the dead timber and the bark of the
trees where the birds love to roam.

The young when first hatched are very pretty, being greyish-white,
with several longitudinal, broad, black stripes along their bodies. (See
illustration.) Stripes on young birds are protective mimicry.

Considering that the Emu is such an impoi-taut and omamental
bird, soon hkely to become scarce, or altogether extinct, as is now the
case in Tasmania, it is somewhat remarkable that so little infomiation
is published with regard to this giant amongst the feathered tribes.
If we wish to augment oiu- knowledge of the habits of this most inte-
resting bird, we should do so without loss of time ; because, however
the bird may hold its own in the little distiu'bed districts of the
interior, it is becoming astonishingly scarce vrithin, say, two hundred
miles of the sea-board, and will rapidly become more so, except the

I060 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Parliamcuts, aud especially the people, aid in its protection. It has
boon for many years extinct in Tasmania and Kangaroo Island. The
State of Victoria, where comparatively few Emus now remain, will soon
rank with those islands. For what few birds do remain, perpetual
protection to them and their progeny might rightly be demanded.
The meagre protection existing in that State is faulty, inasmuch as the
close season for Emus only commences on the 14th June in each year,
whereas some of the birds lay in April and May.* In the neighbouring
State of New South Wales, Emus are protected absolutely for periods
of five years. However, the law there is almost a dead letter, and, as
I myself have witnessed, is more honoured in the breach than in the
observance.

Gould's far-seeing remarks should be written in capital letters: —
" And now a word to Australians, particvilarly to those who arc interest-
ing themselves about acclimatising animals (sparrows and rabbits, and
such like vermin, may I add) from other countries — wishing for tilings
they have not, and neglecting those they possess. ... I must
content myself by praying that protection may be offered to that noble
bird, the Emu. . . . How much will the loss of this fine bird be
regi-etted by every right-minded person who claims Australia as his
fatherland ! "

In addition to many notes supplied to me by friends favourably
situated, I made a special but albeit brief excursion diiring the breeding
season of 1895 into the Wakool district of Riverina to gather
information personally with regard to the Emu. I was fortunately
favoured with an in\'itation to stay at " Strathdon," the fann of my
friend Mr. Neil Macaulay (in fact, to Neil and his brothers I have been
indebted on different occasions for infonnation as well as for specimens),
which is situated in the midst of the best Emu country ; and I was still
further fortunate in falling in with a professional Emu-eggers' camp,
pitched, by permission, within one of Mr. Macaulay's paddocks. I went
hunting with these Emu-eggers (there were four in camp) and " caught
on " much of their experiences gained during the last three seasons ;
some of their information, being either confirmatory of what was
already known or being altogether original, was exceedingly valuable
to me.

A few of the earlier breeders lay towards the end of April or after
the autumnal rains, some in May, while the majoritv have laid by
June or Julv, the young appearing during August and September. Of
course, eggs may be seen as late as August, but on account of the
lengthened incubation needed, they may have been deposited weeks
previously. The hvmters informed me the first voung noticed by them
that season (1895) was at the end of June. Mr. Murdoch Macaulay.
to whose kindness I am indebted for a speciallv selected set of eggs,
informs me in the season of 1891 the Emus did not commence to lay
till the middle of May. Tlie laying period is much regulated by the
rainy season of the year, and they do not lay. or only do so in small
proportions, when the seasons are droughty or bad.

* Since the above wis written the Emu has been protected for the whole year.

EMU'S NEST.

From a Photo by the Author.

N£STS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

1061

With regard to tlio maxiimim number of eggs laid by Emus, I cite
the following Rivcrina data: — Mr. George Warner saw a clutch con-
taining sixteen eggs on the TuUa run; Mr. 1). Parker, a hunter, took
on the 261 ii May, 1895, on Nyang, .seventeen eggs from one nest, and,
remarkable to sUite, the eggs were in two tiers, twelve in the bottom
and live above; but 1 think Mr. Neil Macaulay takes the record with
eighteen, which he counted in a nest at Dunvegan. I have no records
of fifteen eggs, but know of several instances of fourteen.

As a test for the general average number of eggs laid by the Emu,
the following statement sliows a number of nests containing seven eggs
and over, foimd during two successive seasons in Riverina.

1894.

1895.

Found by Messrs. Macaulay Bros.

Found by E

mu-Eggers

' Camp.

Date.

Nest.

Eggs-

Date.

Nest.

Eggs.

loth May . .

9

April

I

10

27th ;, ..

7

May

I

17

27th

12

,,

I

12

28th

(each 7) 14

,,

3

(each 11) 33

31st .,

10

.,

4

(each 10) 40

3rd June . .

(each 8) 32

,,

2

(each 8) 16

3rd

II

June

I

12

3rd

12

„

2

(each 9) 18

8th „ ..

8

,,

7

(each 8) 56

8th „ ..

7

,,

I

7

gth

8

gth

10

2ISt „

9

6th July . .

9

loth

8

nth

8

I2th „

10

Total

21

184

Total . .

23

221

Average, 8^

f<

;ggs pe

r nest.

Av(

;rage,

m

eggsp

er nest.

Nests.
21
23

Eggs.
184
221

44
Combined average

405

i = 9j<^, or9 2.

The incubation of Emu eggs takes about eight weeks. A reference
to a record kept at tlie Zoological Gardens, Melbourne, shows that in
1892 young were noticed there on the 57th day after the male bird
commenced to sit. At the September (1889) meeting of the Linnean
Society of New South Wales, Mr. A. J. North read a " Note on the

I062 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

successful hatchmg of au egg of the Emu under a domestic fowl.' It
took two fowls to complete the task ; the fii-st fowl, after sitting upon
the lai'ge egg for two weeks, became refractory and had to be relieved
by another bird. The egg was turned every day, and was hatched at
the end of seven weeks. Tliis interesting experiment was made by
Mrs. M. Walker, Newtown, Sydney.

The male bird tatcs the task of incubation, during tlic day at all
events. Tliis has been proved by birds being flushed from the nest,
run down by dogs, and dissected on the .spot. I imintentionally " aided
and abetted ' in this cruel act, but once only. Then I can plead in
extenuation that the bird was started accidentally when we were kan-
garooing. Hunters invaiiably cudeavom- to keep their houuds off
brooding Emus.

It lias not been proved satisfactorily that the female never sits or
never relieves the male at night, but it has been proved she lays at
night, or between sunset and sunrise. A hunter, while on the rounds
to his traps, tested two nests, examining them every night and morning.
He found an egg was deposited every second day between sunset and
sunrise, and I can vouch for his statement. However, other observers
are at variance on this point. One says, when the Emu commences to
lay she deposits an egg every day until the clutch is completed.
Another, refening to a pair of birds he watched closely in his private
reserve, says : " Tlie laying was commenced and continued for about a
month, until there were nine eggs in the nest."

The male tends the brood of yomig when hatched ; but up to what
age f I have seen a female accompanied by the previous season's
nearly grown birds. Tliis may be a reason why her lord attends to the
current brood, while it is also an argument against any supposition thai
she relieves her mate on the nest at night.

In answer to a query of mine in tJie cohunns of " Tlic Australasian,"
the following most interesting reply was received from a correspondent
in South Gippsland (Victoria), and published in the issue of the 9tli
October, 1886 : " The Emu's nest was not in a bush paddock, but in a
small rye-grass paddock of about foiu- acres, close to the homestead,
such paddock being clear of timber or trees except a few pines and
willows, and is enclosed by a paling fence and live hedge. The hatching
was completed at the expiration of eight weeks from the time the bird
conmienced to sit, but it would depend whether the bird sat very
closely or not if the hatching would be completed one or two days
before or after the expiration of the eight weeks. There were four
young birds brouglit out, of which two, unforUinalely, were drowned
shortly after, and the remaining two ;u-e now ahvc and thriving admir-
ably. The male bird still takes charge of the young ones, and protects
and nestles them, and will not pcnnit-the female or any others of the
species to apiiroach them, and he is at times quite fierce in his jealous
care of the young. I may say lliat during the term of incubation the
female was k(;pt out of the paddock in which the nest is situated for
as long as a fortnight at a time, and was occasionally allowed to go in,
but she never took any part in the hatcliing process, Tlic male bird,
who was watched during the time he was sitting, was not seen to k-avc

■X.

o

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1063

the nest during the daytime, and if he fed at all it must have been
at night."

Mr. Dudley Le Souef, the Assistant^Director of the Zoological
Gardens, Melbourne, has obligingly favoured me with the following
significant note : " Female (Emu) killed accidentally just when finished
laying. Male bird hatched and reai-cd five young liiniself."

Why do Emus lay during winter, when the groat majority of birds
breetl cku'ing spring and siuiimcrl — an interesting question. We arc
aware that such birds as Finches and Parrots usually lay towards the
end of spring or in summer, when the gi-ass-seeds, &c., are ripe enough
for their young. So I suspect the Emu lays duiing the winter because
the eggs, taking a long tenn of incubation, ai-e hatched just as the
tender blades 01 gi-ass and herbage, upon which the yoiuig Emus feed,
sprout on the first approach of spiing.

I may now venture to give my Emu-nesting experiences in com-
pany with the himtei-s previously referred to. The locality is near the
Neimm', a billabong (or ana-branch) of the Edwards Rivei-, and may be
characterised as flat, open, foi'est country, where red-gum (Eucalyptus
rostiata) fringes the course of the streams, now mostly waterless. Back
from and between the water-coirrses are short box-tree (another species
of Eucalyptus) flats. In paddocks where the trees are " i-ung " for
pastoral purposes, they appear dull and dead, reUeved only by the green
suckers springing from their base, and in keeping with the ground,
which is clotlied with the dead herbage of last season's growth. An
occasional dry bed of a polygonum swamp adds to tlie monotony of
these bo.K-flats, wliile " a rise " of graceful pines (Gallitris) is a cheer-
ful contrast to the sight.

Being winter, the days are calm and cloudless as a iiUe, with much
wannth in the sunshine, while the nights are cold, clear, and frosty.

We perambulate the country on foot, or sometimes take horseback,
spreading out and proceeding in line. Tlie nest is nearly always
discovered by the Emus starting up and running dii-ectly away swiftly
thi-ough the bush. Not much time is lost in finding her, or rather his,
starting-point, and there is revealed a solid oval of large and beautiful
dark-green eggs, side by side, touching or nearly so, with all their long
diameters limning in the one direction, or with the long way of the
oval. If the eggs be warm, either one or other of theii- ends feels cold
to the touch. I suppose embryologists could assign a reason for this.

The hunters tell me that occasionally, on going through coimtry
quietly and coming suddenly upon a sitting bird, he will extend his
neck out upon the groimd as if to escape observation before being forced
to 11m. In one particular instance an old bird sat so closely to his
cliarge that he had to be removed with the aid of a stick. The clutch
(fourteen eggs) was nearly hatched, which accounted, no doubt, for the
poor bird's unwillingness to quit.

The eggs gathered are placed down the legs of old pants, in anus of
singlets, or rolled in cravats, the division between each egg being tied
tightly wth string, the gannents when charged resembling so many
strings of gi-eat squat>shaped sausages. These rings of eggs are now
carried round the hunter, over his shoulder and under the opposite

ioCi4

NESTS AND EGGS OF AVSTRALIAN BINDS.

arm. The next ring is balanced vice versa ; and should the clutches be
large in number and weighty, a third ring in the shape of a collar is
placed round the horse's neck.

The following are the data of .some of the nests I exaniiucd ou the
spot : • — •

1. — 10th June, 1895. Nest placed among dry herbage about a foot
high (diiefly Caloccpha/us), three feet from the base of two small trees
(one dead). Herbage plucked from round about, mixed with a few of
the bird's own feathei-s, and fonned into a bed of about foiu- feet in
diameter. Eggs eight in nimibor.

2. — ^Nest situated six feet from base of mediimi-sized dead tree.
Seemed to be a good layer of diy Cahjcrpl/a/uti tramped down iutO' the
form of an oval bed, 4 feet long by 2^ feet broad. Eggs, eight.

3. — lltli June. Nest situated foiu' feet from base pf tree in a com-
pai-atively open locality, composed of bark, grass, and herbage, evidently
gathered or plucked from close round about by the, sitting bird, there
being a cleai- space or ring 1^ feet bi-oad smTouudiug tJie bed, which was
oval in shape, 4 feet by 2^- feet in dimensions. Eggs, eight. Sitting bird,
after being flushed, was unhappily run down by the dogs. On dissection
it proved to be a male.

4. — 12th June. Nest m a slight hollow in a patch of herbage,
chiefly cane-grass, locally so-called, in oj^eu timber. As usual, the
gi'ass was cleared up immediately round about and fonned into a good
bed 5 feet long by 3 feet broad ?ud about 2 inches in thickness. Eggs
again eight. This nest, fiom which I flushed the bird, was only fifty
yards from a frequently used buggy track.

5. — Nest placed vinder small dead tree, with some saplings sprouting
from base. Bed fonned of dead leaves (eucalyptus) and grass in addi-
tion to a few of the bkd's feathers, but cliiefly the eucalyptus leaves,
evidently plucked from the branchlets above. Eggs eight, and one
fractiu-ed shell. This nest was picturesquely situated, Ijeing protected
in front by dead branches, and made a splendid photograph.

6. — 13th June. Nest found about fifty paces from a wire boundary
fence, and under a small tree with branching suckers from base, sur-
rounded with a few large fallen sticks ; altogether, with the beautiful
green eggs, forming a pretty picture. There was the usual amount of
bedding for the eggs, which were an uncompleted clutch of six. The
bu-d was not sitting, but was seen loitering not far distant. In the
uncertain light (it being sundown) the bird appeared to be tiic female.

As I was sure the eggs in the la.st-meutioned clutch were perfectly
fresh, I brought one full to my home in Melbourne. It weighed 1 lb.
7 J ozs. (a weight, about equal to a dozen ordiuaiy domestic fowl's eggs), the
shell weighing 3 oz., leaving a net result of 20A oz. This quite filled a
medium-sized frying-pan, making a substantial Ijrcakfast for a family.
Contrary to expectation, the flavour was, if anything, milder than that
of the domestic fowl's, which wa.s cooked afterwards in tlic same pan
for comparison; therefore some palates may consider the Emu's egg
tasteless, but we proved it a dclica-cy. Moreover, the appearance when
cooked was clean and tempting; the yolk was light-yellow; the albumen
firm but scmi-traiisparent, not an opaque white, hke that of an ordi-

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1065

luu-y fowl's egg, or so glutinous as a Mutton Bird's (Petrel) or other
sea-fowl's. To boil ;ui Emu's egg, I believe, taltes about twenty niiuutts.

Tiie aborigines cook Emus' eggs by boring _ a sm;ill hole at one end,
and violently shaking the contents into the hot ashes of their camp
lii-e ; every few minutes the shaking is renewed, while the whole mess
is turned rejx'atedly until properly cooked. Only aborigines appreciate
Emu's flesh, although sometimes white men use the oil. The aborigines
stalk and spear the birds by stealth, but like better to wait at a water-hole
where birds come to drink. When the Emu is on liis hunkers at the
water's brink, the dusky hunter in ambush drops a tomahawk or spear
upon the unsuspecting bird. In parts of Central Australia the natives
taint the water with a weed of narcotic propensities, thus stupefying
tlu^ birds that drink. On this subject Professor \V. Baldwin Cspencer
remarks : " Attention is drawn to the curious use which the natives
make of some plants, such as pituri. In certain parts of Central
Austraha, as, for example, to the south of Lake Amadeus, a decoction
is made of the leaves of the plant, which is found growing amongst the
sandhills, and the Uquid is placed where the Emu can drink it, the
result being that the bird is stupefied, and falls an easy prey to the
spear of the native. "

To show how prolific Emus were in some parts of Australia, like-
wise to demonstrate how flagiantly the " Game Act " is broken, during
the season 1894, according to a Sydney newspaper, a boundary rider in
Queensland sold or sent to that city 1,123 Emu eggs, which realised
12s. per dozen, or a total value amoimting to more than his wages for
t)ie year.

With i-eference to the question whether Emus swim or not, Mr. Geo.
F. Ai-mitage (INIildura) thoughtfully sent the following note : " On
Cliristmas, 1893, I was travelling to Swan Hill from Mildui-a in the
steamer ' EUen,' when, roimding a bend of the river, I was astonished
to see, about lOG yards ahead, a small flock of five Emus just taking the
water (from the Victorian side). They either did not see the boat, or
were oblivious of danger, for they swam on in order to reach the
opposite bank, and although the boat dashed right into the midst of
them, scattering some to one side and some to the other, so that they
became perfectly deluged with water, they soon righted themselves,
and reached the shore in safety, where they rejoined their companions,
who apparently had previously crossed."

I shall conclude my observations on the Emu with a pretty scene
I witnessed in Riverina one balmy day in September. After a tedious
plodding with a bugg)- and pair through flooded ligniun coimtry, we
emerged on a gi-assy rise where we noticed Emus gamboling — running
sideways, kicking, &c. Seeing they were hemmed in by water on one
side and by a fence on the other side we put the horses hard to their
collars, and were soon galloping amongst a splendid flock of twenty-eight
bii-ds, some remarkably large and dark. At the imminent risk of

oui- flying vehicle colhding with tree-stumjjs and fallen logs, we enjoy a
meriy spin with the fleet-footed birds. How graceful is their high-
stepping action ' We can hear the peculiar rustling noise of the feathers
caused by the birds in rapid motion. When a bird puts on a spurt, or

i066 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

goes at top speed, it carries its body together with neck extended at an
angle of about 45 deg. with the plain. Of course the fine birds soon
distance ns by making " ti'acks " amid wreaths of spray through a flooded
sliallow, whUe we wheel and continue oui' own track.

Ou cloudless, moonless nights, especially in winter, there may be
seen in the southern sky the shadow of a great Emu in the act of
running, as it were, eastward. Its head is fonned by the " Devil's
stoke-hole " against the Southern Cross constellation, then the neck and
body may be traced downward tlu-ough the " Milky Way," the legs being
lost on the horizon. I am informed that an aboriginal tribe (" Bell-
yoon-mah ") on the Upper Muichison (West Australia), possesses a legend
about this " Emu in the Sky."

In connection with the Emu the following iUustrations are given ;
(1) " Finding an Emu's Nest," (2) " An Emu's Nest," (3) " Emu-eggers,
RetiuTiing with the Spoil," (4) " An Emu-eggers' Camp," (5) " A Pet
Emu," (6) " Emu Chicks."

763. — Drom^us irroratus, Bartlett. — (493)
SPOTTED EMU.

Figure. — Sclater : Trans. Zool. Soc, iv., pi. 76 (1S62).

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 589.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Campbell : Victorian Naturalist
(18SS), also Roy.' Phys. Soc, Edin., vol. xiii., p. 226 (1896),
North : Austn. Mus. Cat., p. 294 (18S9).

Geograplncul Distribution. — Northern Territoiy (probably), West
and North-west Australia, interior of South Australia, and Victoria
(accidental).

yent. — Similar to that of the Common Emu (1). n<iv(c lioZ/diu/ut J,
being a flat bed of herbage upon the gi'omid.

A'yv-v. — Clutch, average eight to ten. As in the other variety, a
maximum of eighteen has been reported. Of the usual elliptical form,
both ends being alike in shape, supci-ficially in appearance like shagi'cen,
or rough American cloth ; general coloiu-, of a beautifid dark green ; but
if examined closely only the raised or rough pjuticles or granulations of
the shell will be found to be dark green, wliieli, at certain angles of
light, are poli.shed and assume a very dark intligo colour, wliile the inters-
tices are of a light gieen. In general appearance the eggs resemble those
of the Common Emu. Dimensions in inches of a proper clutch .
(1) 5-25 X 3-68, (2) 5-25 x 3-62, (3) 5-18 x 3-62, (4) 5-18 x 3-62,
(5) 5-06 X 3-56, (6) 5-0 x 3-62, (7) 5-0 x 3-62.

Ohservntionx. — During my visit to Western Australia I gallieivd
what information I could refen-ing to the Emits, and aUhougli

A PET EMU.

From a Photo by the Avthor.

EMU CHICKS.

From a Photo by D. Le Souif.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. loO/

tlie Connuou birtl cxrtaiiily inliabiU tlmL territory, there appears
to exist a Spotted variety also, which exhibits a preference, so
it is reported, for the " silver ' gi-ass counti-y of the mterior and possibly
extends its range to the north-west. Tliat it also wanders far east-
wai-d is known by the fact that a specimen of the Spotted Emu taken
in Victoria is in the National Musciun, Melboiunc.

The two species, as contrasted in Gould, represent the feathers of
the Spotted v;u-iety as being baiTcd or spotted alternately with dull white
and gi-ey, witli a maiginal tip of black, whereas the feathers of the Com-
mon vai-iety aie gi-ey only, tipped with black. The general appearance
of tlie whole coat of the Spotted bird is frequently of a decided brownish
tinge. This 1 observed in skins I saw used as mats in some of the dwell-
ings of the \\'ost Australians. The Spotted Emu is not so heavy in the
legs as the Common vai-iety.

On my retiu'u home from Western Australia, Captain Thomas W.
Smith, of the Government schooner " Meda," thoughtfully forwarded
a voimcr Emu, which was taken in the north-west. The bu'd remained
on my premises luitil it grew out of all proportion to the size of its
quiU'ters, therefore was transfeiTed to the Zoological Gardens, where
it developed into a splendid male bird, with more of a reddish tinge
about his coat, while the feathers are sooty grey (not pale grey), and
darker down the centre compai'ed with the eastern birds in the same
enclosure. He mated with an eastern bird. Result, a maximum , clutch
of eighteen eggs, which unfortunately were deserted after the male had
incubated them about foui-teeu days.

He was particularly fond of the children. When they romped, the
bird would do so too, racing round the yard and gamboling about,
occasionally " planting " with his neck outstretched along the ground,
as if hiding. He would devoui' almost anything. One day a pedlar
called, was wroth because liis basket of wares was not patronised, and
while holding forth as to the iniquitous conduct of the householder,
■' Siwttie," as we called the Emu, because his juvenile plumage was
decidedly spotted, stole up quietly from behind, and commenced throwing
thimbles and trinkets of trifling value down his throat.

I found some confusion of dates existed among West Australians as
to when the Emu lays there, some saying autumn or winter, others
alhnning positively that spring is the time. Probably all are right, as
the breeding season is gieatly affected by the seasons of rain. The fol-
lowing notes are culled from Mr. Tom Carter's lettei-s to me. During
a season of distressing drought in 18'Jl, ho wi'itcs from Point Cloates ; —
" Shot an Emu (female) in very poor condition. Doubtless hard up for
water, the nearest known pool being forty miles distant, and I do not
know if that be dry too. The natives say the Emus diink the sea.
A shepherd killed one on the beach a short time ago." Again : " Emus
are drinking salt-water and dying in numbers."

Another season, Mr Carter writes under various dates : — " March
20th. Shot female with large clutch of eggs within her."

" Minilya, May 18th. Emu eggs brought in by natives."

" Gascoyne, May 25th. Five eggs (Emu) seen in nest."

lOOS NESTS Ah'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Mr. Douglas Caddeu, who kiudly I'orwaided me, in 1886; a fine clutch
of sevtn eggs of the Spotted Emu from the Muichisou district, says the
birds visually lay there about iVlay and June ; while in the south-west,
IVii-. A. J. Bussell (WallchlT) writes : — " Emus lay according to the season,
but never earlier than the middle of June, or later than middle of
August."

In 1889, when I visited Western AusU'alia, yoimg Emus about a
week old were observed on the last day of October by an employe of
Wallcliff. In that case the eggs would have been laid towards the end
of August.

764. — Droileus ater, VieUlot.
(EXTINCT).

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol xxvii., p. 5SS.
Geugraphical Distribution. — Kaugaioo Island (South Australia).

Observations. — ^It may, perhaps, appear to be folly to include an ex
tinct bii'd in this work. But I do so as a timely warning to my fellow
counti-ymen. It is sad to contemplate that many of oiu' bu'ds, more
especially such feathered giants as the Emus and the Cassowary, may
be swept oil the face of the eai-tli by the ever-advancing tide of civiliza-
tion, and perhaps even sooner than we anticipate, be numbered with the
extinct Moas of New Zealand, and the more recently defimct Emus of
Tasmania and Kangaroo Island. Provincial Parliaments may ,pass enact-
ments for the proper protection of birds and animals, but it surely rests
with the people to see that tliese laws are strictly obsei-ved.

When the French expedition mider Baudni explored Kajigaroo Island
in 1803, Peron the naturalist captured tlu*ee Emus ahve and took tliem
to Paris. A pair was sent to the residence of the Empi'ess Josephine,
and the remaining one to the Jardiu des Plantes. In 1822, two of the
birds died. One was stuffed and the other moiuited as a skeleton, while
the third specimen was apparently lost. However it has been recently
re-discovered in a snigular manner.

Professor H. H. GigUoli, of the R. Zoological Museimi, Florence,
wrote an interesting letter in. " Natui-e," 31st May last, on "A third
Specimen of the Extinct Bromceus ater," and concludes thus : — " For
some years past my attention had been drawn to a small skeleton of a
Ratitse in the old didactic collection of the 11. Zoological Museum luider
my direction. It was labelled ' Casoju-is,' but was in many ways diilerent
from a Cassowaiy ; but other work kept me from the proposed closer
investigation, and it was only quite recently, during a visit of the Hon
W;dter Rothschild, on his telling me that he was working out the
Cassowaries, that I remembered tlie enigmatical skeleton. A better
inspection showed us that it is, without tlie least doubt, a specimen of
tho lost Drommus ater. 1 afterwards ascort-ained tliat- it had been first
catalogued in this Mu.srvim in 1833 ; that most of the bones bore written

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 1069

on them in a bold round hand, veiy characteristic of the first quai-ter
of the nineteenth century, the words ' Casoar male'; and lastly, that
during the latter part of Cuvier's life, about 1825-30, an exchange of
specimens had taken place between the Paris and Florence ]\Iuseunis.
I have thus vri-y little doubt that our specimen is the missing fhirfl one
brought alive to Paris by Peron in 1804-5."

The melancholy part of the histoiy in connection with the specimens,
is that Peron was not aware that the Emu he discovered on Kangaroo
Island, being smaller and darker, was specifically quite distinct from the
mainland bird. When Vioillot's species was pronounced to be a good
one it was too late — much too late — to prociu'e more bn-ds, for it is
stated that the fii-st settler (who shall be nameless) on Kangaroo Island
deliberately exterminated not only all the Emus there, but the Kanga^
roo3 al-so.

1 have often thought the extinct Emu of Tasmania (of which the only
relics remaining are one or two eggs) was possibly distinct from the main-
land Emu. Judging from an egg now in the possession of Mr J. W.
Mellor, Fiilham, South Australia, the bird was small like the Kangaroo
Island one.

The egg may be described as elliptical in shape and othermse similar
to that of D. novo" hoUandice, but smaller. Dimensions in
inches : 4'8 x 3-5.

FAMILY— CASUARIID.E : CASSOWARIES.

765. — Casu.\rius austrai.is, Wall. — (494)
CASSOWARY.

Figure. — Gould : Birds of Australia, fol., supp., pis. 70 and 71.

Reference. — Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xxvii., p. 594.

Previous Descriptions of Eggs. — Ramsay: Proc. Zool. See, p. 119
(1876); Campbell: Victorian Naturalist (i886) ; Lumholtz :
Among Cannibals, p. gg (1S90) ; North : Austn. Mus. Cat.,
p'.. 15 {18S9) ; Campbell : Roy. Phys. See, Edin., vol. xiii.,
p. 229 {i8g6) ; Meston : Proc. Roy. Soc. Q., vol. x. — xii. (1892-7

GengraphirnJ Diitrihution. — ^North Queensland.

Nest. — A bed of sticks, leaves, and such-like vegetable debris, usually
placed near the base of a large tree in dense scrub.

Efff/s. — ^Clutch, four to six ; some authorities state three to five ;
of a gi-aceful elHptical fonn, and superficially like shagreen or rough
American cloth, but not so rough or granulated as the Emu's (Bromaius)
egg. General appearance in colour, beautiful light pea^green, but if ex-
amined vertically the raised rough particles only of the shell will be
found to be gi-een, whUe the minute intei^stices are greenish-white.
Dimensions in inches: (1) 5-56 x 3-75, (2) 5'43 x 3-81, (3) 5-43 x 3-62 ;
of an elongated example in Mr. S. A. White's collection : 6-25 x 3-75,
(Plate 27.)

lO/O NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Obstrvatio/ia. — The eggs of the Cassowaiy arc especially interesting,
not only for their great beauty, but for being tlie largest and amongst
tlie rarest of Australian eggs. I'he splendid birds themselves possess
a limited habitat, being confined to a nanow strip of coastal scrub-
country, about three hundred miles in length, in Northern Queensland,
the southern bound;u-y being the Herbert River (where the birds are
now almost unknown), tlie northern Uniit being well up into the head of
the Cape York Peninsula.

On accoiuit of the Cassowary's naturally restricted area being taken
up by planters ajid others, the noble bird should he ligorously protected,
or it will as smely soon become extinct like the Emus of Tasmania and
Kangaroo Island. It has been suggested that the large scrxib-clad island
of Hincliinbrook, adjacent to the mainland, be a reserve for the per-
petual protection of Cassowaries. A more suitable place for tlie purpose
could not well be found.

Really little is yet known of the habits of the Cassowary — a great
bird full of speculative interest to natiu-alists, inasmuch as it is supposed
to be one of the living representatives, or, perhaps, the surviving contem-
porary of such large extinct birds as the Moas of New Zealand. The
Australian. Cassowary was first discovered by the late Thomas Wall,
naturalist to the expedition commanded by the iU-fated explorer
Kennedy, and was described as Ca/fvarius australis in the " Illustrated
Sydney Herald," 3rd Jvinc, 1854.* The second specimen was shot,
September, 1866, by Mr. R. Johnson, Inspector of Police — now Police
Magistrate, Queensland. The bird is still called, in some paits of that
colony, Johnson's Cassowary.

Dr. E. P. Ramsay, in the " Proceedings of the Zoological Society "
for 1876, furnishes an e.xceedingly interesting account of tlie Cassowary.

I fully conciu- with Dr. Ramsay's remarks about the wariness and
shyness of the Cassowary, and r(_peated his experience by rctimiing
without a specimen, although my companions and myself endcavoiu-ed
persistently to obtain a bird in the flesh, which we wanted for a museum.
Once we divided our party for a week — two proceeding twenty miles
in one direction, and two a like distance in an opposite direction.
Frequently we noticed the bird's fresh tracks by the banks of streams,
but at the end of our appointed time wo returned to ovu- st^irting-point
(camp) without " Ymi-gun,'' as the aboriginals call the Cassowaiy, or in
pigeon-EngUsh, " Big-fellow Chookic-chookie."

A considerate selector {i.e., a person who selects and dwells upon the
land under Government regulations), hoping to do us a service, brought
us a mangled skin, which had every appearance of liaving been skinned
with his axe.

It is difficult to undei-staiid how such a bulky bird as the Cassowaiy
can push its way through the (>ntanglenient of vines, canes and ci-eepei-s,
in such a rapid, free, and easy manner as it is credited witli. To aid
tlio bird in so (|uickly threading the scrub when pui-sucd, no doubt its

" It was described by Mr. Win. S Wall, brother of Mr. Thomas W.ill. who
succumbed to the privations of the expedition on the 2Sth December. i8.)S The
Cassowary was sliot on the 4th of the previous month, by " Jackey," ,1 faithful
aborigine, and had to be abandoned.

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 107 1

sloping, liomy helmet, and the long quills of tlic spiunous wings, play
an important paal.

I had the opportunity of viewing a handsome pair of full-grown
Cassowaries, the property of Mr. B. Gulliver, at Acacia- Vale Nui-stries,
Townsville (Queensland). Tliey were beautiful creatm-es in their jet-
black, hair-like coats, shorter in build, and with nuich more powerful
legs than the Emu. The head and neck were destitute of feathers, but
covered willi a beautiful blue and pink skin, there being also two small
pinkish lobes of wattle hanging from the breast or neck. The birds
stood about four feet high, but when fully erect were a, foot higher.
Their horny helmets should have been about six inches in length, but
these head-pieces had been considerably battered down in various duels,
for both birds were males. To fight one another, they have been
observetl to clear at a single bound a dividing fence seven or eight feet
high. Tliey were fed almost entirely on the fruit of the papaw-tree
(Carica -papaya J, cut up into morsels about an inch or so square, which
iu-e taken between the points of the mandibles, and by a graceful uplift-
ing of the head jerked into the gullet. When a bird is scared or alarmed
it makes a most peciiliai", ventriloquial soiuid, repeated five or six times.
To produce this noise the bird is seemingly put to an immense effort.
It doubles its head downwards, placing its chin close to its neck, all the
back and rear feathers being erected, while, with .spasmodic jerks, it
pumps, so to speak, a sound resembling distant thunder. Mr. B. Gulliver
captui-ed these Cassowaries when young, in the Cairns district, in
October, 1883.

The handsome pair of eggs whicli I described in 1886 was from the
collection of Dr. T. P. Lucas. The following year Mr. Joseph Barker,
in my interest, annexed from the natives (aborigines), just as tliey were
about to cook and eat them, two sfiecimens, fresh and beautifid. The
eggs, whicli were found in the Cardwell disti'iet, 3rd October, reached my
collection safely. Mr. Barker, who is a keen field obsei-ver, happened
to be at Oak Hills, in the same district, during one of Mr. K. Broadbent's
(the able collector attached to the Queensland Museum) visits. I imder-
stand, together, they found a Cassowan'.« nest in September, 1886, con-
taining three fresh eggs. The nesting place was merely a hollow on a
dn' stony ridge, in the centre of a dense scnib.

Dr. Lumholtz, in his fascinating book " Among Cannibals, " refemng
to the Cassowary, under date 6th October (1882), says; — "Natives
brought me two eggs, and a young bird just hatched. Eggs, three in
niunber, are frequently laid at long intei-vals. In this instance there
was the bird just hatched, one egg almost hatched, and another egg the
contents of which could easily be blown. Tlius we see that the
young are not hatched all at one time, and that the female must there-
fore take care of them while the male bird is sitting."

As in the Emu, so in the Ca,ssowary, upon the male devolves the task
of incubating the eggs. The laving season may be said to be from the
end of August or the beginning of September to October, and the period
of incubation probably seven weeks or over.

I do not recollect ever seeing a published description of the young
of Casuarius australis. About the end of January, 1891, I saw in

1072

NESTS AND EGGS OE AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Melbourne four yoxing Cassowaries (presumably about three or four
months old) that were captured in tJio Johnston district of Noi-thera
Qui ensland. Down the back was a broad, dark stripe, succeeded by
two others on either side, then by smaller ones (two or three) more or
less indistinct or broken as they approached the stomach, the interstices
and stomach being dirty-brown or yellowish-white ; wattles on face and
neck, white, and feet also whitish ; bill also whitish, but upper mandible
bluish-black, with gi'eeuish tinge before the eyes. Eyes steel blue, trans-
fomiing intermittently in the daylight into a gi'eenish shade.

^- ^ ^ ^

-i^
>,

Wliitc Goshawk.

><^-i

/.

J^

"V

^:.

.IT-"

\

*^S

\V,.,iyH -t.iilefl H.iy'le (Kagle-lvjw-k ) .

!■' ^/ ^^:^ ^.

^ .1"

-V

Little Eagle.

A*.,.-

>■ .

/
y

r ^ ^

> <t

-i^^:

. -c -i- ■■■:,

White headed Sea Eagle.

# ^

V

^i i t

Jf-

^ ^ .

-# >

'~*'

•• i'.nx.

Kite.

Square -tailed Kite.

Black- shouldei'ed Kite.
(r;f'il('f wiiiojed Kite.)

Blac.k-Brea.sted Buzzard.

Black- cheeked Falcon.

hpr.«EH««U>'^>.~/)r«

W'<»Mgoww«*»waUi.-i*w<ifc'i'<a3W'>*.<«»6t*tfi3««^"i'-'.n>i--i»an»>r-a

Little Falcon .

Brown Hawk

M.

*» ,-

,?¥

^W-%,-^- ^^"'

,f

)

Rax'e u .

Hill Crow-Shrike.

\'

^

Grey .lumper.

Kestrel .

White -winged Chough.

Osprey (^Fish-hawk)

Black Crow-Shrike.

: c: Br.tUwbuAk finz

1UT.I3 I ^nhfcidljlh "■I'frH L3|(U3^

I I * .■ \ I 1. V >

ft

Hifle bird.

Albert Hine-bird

K^l-^:

MHtuicode.

'•* . y

Oi-iult> .

^'' *

*:«i

Yellow-L.ellif d Fi(j-bii\J.

I

Magpie Lark.

(^^

Drongo-

Gre\'' Shrike -Thru sli.

C C Bnillebani- Pmx

Black - far I'd Curkoo-Shlike. Barred Ciickno Shrike

VAiite-t^liouldrred Caterpillar- eater. Browi Flv-catcher.

^^

Rufous bi'easted Shrilce-Thnisli.

Pied Caterpillar- eateiv

Ground Cuckoo Shrike.

Ca1er pillar-eater.

' BnttUbsak Pirut

IjcL ^xHiti I»lXvt

1 i < . \ t 1 J

f

VBlack-tliroated Fly-eater. /$ i .

Scarlet -iireiistefl Robin.

Roso-bj-ea.sted Robin.

Kufous Fmifail.

White -browed Robin.

X,

Blue Wren.

Hooded Robin.

■.•■»

White- shafted Fan-tail .

^^^^ite -throated Fly-eater.

/-Short-billed Tree-til

Black and White Fan-tail .

Red-capped Robin.

; Brmlebmnk Pmx

ftinoi 4 aj4Ll^Liiil].ifh l.-rlfid^ La^-'ti

r-

Yellow-breast ed Fly-calcli-

Leaden Flv-<alcher

spotted Bower-bird ^^^K^

Shilling Fiv-catcher

Reed -VTarblei-

J«f.

■*

'•y>

Restless Fly-catcher

Wute -bellied Flv-oatcher

Gfouiid-Tlirush

Salin jBi>wer-bird

Spotted -Cat bii-d

C C brjttlebsnk Pitvx

I 1 . . \ I r^ I vj

Crass -Wai'bler

Hed-tlu-oat

Emu Wren

Scrub -Tit

'• -• »i

Ci'assAVren

Little Field-Wren

c

Lar^e-biUed Scnib-Wren

Browii Tit

Crass-Bird

.r»'

Regeui Bird

Spotted iVioiuidBird

C C Br;ttUkat.k f ^r

PflVhOn S, Drilifcford.Llti: Sn'rfiiaH KnP

Pilot liinl

Brnwii Son^-Lui'k

Chest nil trumped
GroimUAWeu

Rufous Song-Lark ilK:

V\Tiite-facc

'X^^f:

Drang'e-froiit.eil Chat

AVTiit e -browe dBabbler

Striated Keld-Wren

V^^

Wedge-bill

.S^

"V

f^X k:,

W^^'fK ^

Coachwhip -bi»-d

Babbler

"^l^"??*

Lono" -billed Magpie

White -backed Magpie

1 S Bi aU-^/ojd.L

Buti-hor-liii'd

Black-tlu'oated Butcher-hircl

j?r- f-'-

Wliiti'-throatefl Tree-creeper ,-»-=»^,^ ^Vhilf --throated Tliuldieail

Ashv-trouted Flv-Robin

Northern Thickhead

>^Tiite -breasted Robiu

Yellow-breasted Shrike Robin

* S'

Siirike-Tit

'S

>

Black But«her-bird

Bell-bird

'>'%•

Orautjc -winded Tlfr-iniimei-

Sun-bird

I

Browu Tree oi'ceper

Dusloy' Hoiiev-^a^tei

Wiilc browed S pixie bill

WhitR-eye

V

Whitc-uaped Honey- e ale f

Strong -billed Honey eater

Striped 11 i>n ey oatcr

Brown Honey-eater

Brown- backed Honey-eater

Pied Honey-eater

/ »■',

4f -^ - \

Tawray. miwneii Honey- eater
Fulvous fronted

Redtliroated Honey-eat-er

o

Wiu'tv -inred Huiie^- cater

V

Shining' Honey-cater

4 •

Vi»ll<m- eared Uoneycater

Vellow faced Hon^-eater ^,-»*'*

Yellow t4jtfte4 Honey-eatet-

Helmeted Koney^eater

Yellow-plumed Honey-eater

Vellow -tinted Honev-eater

€

Bell Miner

White -bearded Honey-eater
1is\

'»

Miner

Duslsj' Miner

Red Wattle-bird

Little Watt le-l.ii-a

^^• tlou-lhi'oat ed Fi-iarbiitl

Spiney-clieekiHl Honey^eain-

Friar bird

Klwc-faced Honey-eatei*

;| ■■:-•■

Woo d v> %\'aUo w

TT-ee Martin

^VHite-nimped Wood Swallow

Ground Lai'k

Wliite-browedWbod S'w.'allow

Helinet,ed Friar-bird

i'-iw^Dn ScErailsford.Lith Sheffield Eng

1

J

Ti\ir«iii-i vSi-T*iih Ih'inI

'ir *

Stirling St-arling

Palli.l Ou.-koo

BusVi Larlt

liHP^e -"tailed Ni^hljar

Spotted Nightjar

fV^

Pitta

Victoria Lyre -bii'd

: BritlUbank Pinx

} ..v^on ftLBrailsfordXilh ShcmeM Eng

Bixnva Quail

StuhUe Quail

:-;-:^

Chestnut -bellied Quail

NaiTOAv -billed Br ouze -Cuckoo

S(£uai-e -tailed (Bnish) Ciiclii^o

Koel

Fan -tailed Cuckoo

Bronze -Cuckoo

Channel -bill

C C Br:ir.ebtrilt Pir.x

;raiiEford Lith Shcfi-.sU Eng

FhATK IK

?iiinveil (^luul

Litth- (Juail

Pectoral Hail

Plain \\"undeiei-

...K?i*-

Spotted Crake

KiiJlcc Fowl (Native FheasanT)

: C Brm'.eJanV Pinx-

P^wsoT S.Eratlsfor(i,Llih Siiefiicld - Eng

i i>^M Ij. I./

Xati^e -lieu

Spotless Crake

Little Crake

♦ii

<<*fc

Bald Coot

Blaclr Moor -"hen

31ack.-t4iiled WiaXive -lien

C C Bniuebaok P:r.x

P^wson &BrBilsford.Iith Sh^riieH EiU|

Coot

Bustard ov TOld Tiu'key

Crane oi* !tfative Companion.

C C BnitUbank Pim:

P,iv/sr.n feBreiMord Li'h Sh^mdcl Eng

I'l.ATI-; •_"!

Louji-liiUed Stone Fli.viT

Bed - kHperl Dottj'el

Pi'atiucole

± ^^ m

m.'^'fr'^

\

^ ^^^- lis.

Pifd in-^tfT-.atcher

St oue Plover

Sh-^T:di Eaj

I'l. ATI-

Dot tifi

DcmMe-limulc.l Dottrel

iilack -lireasted PloT^ei*

Black - fronUul 3)ott.rel

Re d-c appe d Dottrel

Spiu--^-iu^ed Plover

ri.Ai !•; j:.)

-».>-.■

Mar^^li Teru

Piiiurt-.i vSu]

!"■

e*-- -

^T" * * *

^ * «^

Caspian Tera

Hose ate Tern

Snipe

WM

.Vhite - headed Stilt

H,ed- necked Avocet

: C Bnttletack Pinx

I^wi;-3n tBrailsfoidXiVIi ShemeU Eng

I I.. VI !■. JJ-

.#.

Noddy

« *

% »

Xesser Noddy

#1*

^ M

White -fac. d Tenilit

?^%'

V

^

^^

.'• •» A

,^ ■^ • m

Crei.ted Tern

V

:.m:

* ,.^i

lesser Crested Tern

Bi'o ni-wiii^ed Teni

CCBrutlebanV. P,nx

Glossy Ibis

White Tom

•Ml*-.

P

^

Sku;i

Pacific Gull

■ Briulobank ?tr.x

Bittern

"Wliite- fronted Heron

itSi

•^-T^

I'LATK 2(;

Reef Heron

■^.

-^*

^

Red- tttiied IVopic-bird

/

White Egret

Night Heron

; E-illi«bini. Pirut

l-KAT

£mu

:. C BnUlebaak Pinx

Caa^so^vary

..a Lui-.,ol-/:/lJcU Ent

1073

APPENDIX.

The MSS. for this volume were completed in 1899, but thi-ough the
unavoidable delay, chiefly caused in sending the proofs thereof between
England and Australia, another year has elapsed. The delay, however,
has enabled the Author to make a few impoitant additions of items
that have been overlooked in the bulk of the work, or of new descrip-
tions (some by other workers) wliich have recently come to hand. For
the sake of priority tlie general work may be quoted for 1899, the
Appendix for 1900.

54. PtILORHIS PARADI8EA.

RIFLE BIRD.

Mr. S. W. Jackson, of Sydney, who camped in the scrubs of the
Richmond River district this season (1899), for the pui-pose of observing
Rifle and other scrub birds, has most thoughtfully sent me his advance
field notes respecting the finding of five nests of the Rifle Bird. These
nests were found at altitudes varying from fifteen to forty-five feet from
the gi'ound. all in " cheny " trees,* and, with one exception, in the massive
and thoniy lawyer (palm) vines, which enveloped the tree trunks. Firet
nest, containing two beautiful eggs, was taken 2nd November. Tlie nest
was exceedingly difficult to take on accoiuit of the troublesome lawyer
vines, which had to be negotiated by the aid of a pole secured to the
gi-oiuid by guys. 'lae nest was so completely hidden among the vines
that it could not be seen from the gi-ound. Tlie capital picture (given
elsewhere) of this nest, from a photograph by Mr. Jackson, shows the
remarkable ornamentation of snake-skins which completely cover's the
top and sides of the nest, Othei-wise the nest is composed of dead leaves,
twigs, and the gi-een, glossy fronds of a climbing fern (Foly podium), and
mea.siires about ten inches across.

Second nest (two eggs) was taken 20th November. Tliis nest was
only about thirty yards from Mr. Jackson's tent, and wa.s fii-st obsei-ved

• Mr. J. G. Luehmann, National Herbarium. Melbourne, informs me that
these trees are probably the Ela-odeiidron australe of botanists. {A. I. C.)

68

1074 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

building on the 18th October. It haxl also plentiful decorations of snake-
skin, one piece of which hung down three feet seven inches.

Third nest, taken 29th November, contained a single egg in an
advanced stage of incubation.

Fourth nest, found 30th November, aJid an-angements were made
to take it the following day. But during the night a violent storm
brovight down a giant fig-tree, which, clearing a path for itself in the sci^ub,
in turn brought down the tree with the Rifle's nest. In looking amongst
the fallen debris afterwards, Mr. Jackson found part of the nest and
fragments of egg shell. Hard luck !

The fifth nest was discovered 4th December, was situated in a mass
of parasitical fern (PiiJtjpoduim), on the top of a tree, and contained
young. Regarding this nest and other interesting items, Mr. Jackson
concludes : " I observed the female Rifle Bird placing a piece of snake-
skin, fully foiu- feet long, on the nest. I could see it quite plainly as I
lay in the shade with vcvj field glasses, therefore I concluded she had not
finished building. I returned again in seven days in hopes of procuring
a set of cg'gi, but I was very much upset and disappointed on finding
half an egg shell on the gi-ound, and on climbing up to the nest I was
more than siu^irised to find two newly-hatched young birds, which were
quite black and devoid of feathers or down of any kind.

" This now proves that the Rifle Bird had eggs in the nest the day I
saw her building, or rather putting snake-skins on it, though I of course
naturally fancied the nest wa.s not finished.

" My experience is that the Rifle Birds never come to the ground for
nnteri.al for their nests, because on several occasions I have noticed them
collecting snake-skins from limbs of trees and in among vines. It is
impossible to follow the birds when they fly through dense scnib to their
nests with the skin.

" All material used in the Rifle Bird's nest is collected among the
topmost limbs of tall trees. I have watched for hoiu's the birds building.
The male does not feed the female while she is sitting, nor does lie build
any portion of the nest, all being done by the female as far as I have
observed. The female leaves her nest and goes to feed eveiy morning
at about 10.30, and again in the afternoon at 4.30."

Subscpently I had the pleasure of examining the above mentioned
nests and eggs in Mr. Jackson's collection at Sydney. The nests
resembled the one I had described, bvit the singular ornamentations of
snake-skins were more intact. One nest seemed to have almo.st a
complete skin. In the first pair of eggs taken (November 2nd, 1899)
by Mr. Jackson, one (1) is similar in shape and character to the
colouring of the type egg described by me; while the other (2) is an
elongated oval, pinker in the ground-colour, and has the striped
markings about the apex more numerous and richer. Dimensions :
(1) 1-29 X -94, (2) 1-3SX-92. (This pair is now in the collection of
Dr. Charles Ryan, Melbourne.) The pair Mr. Jackson retained for
himself (taken November 20th, 1899) are elongated ovals. Dimen-
sions: (1) 1-36 X -92, (2) 1-36 X -9.

The male belonging to the first nest was in a transition state of
plumage, as was the case with the male of the typo nest, proving

APPENDIX 1075

that the males occasionally breed before their full and beautiful livery
is donned. I handled one of these partly-plumaged males which Mr.
Jackson obtained. The upper surface is similar to the female's, with
one or two black feathers appearing about the back of the neck and
some of the brownish primaries becoming dusky-coloiu-ed. On the
under surface the an-ow-shapcd markings on the feathers are generally
darker and slightly mottled in parts ; the chest has a few sliining
shields and patches of sooty black ; the thighs also arc sooty, and on
the abdomen is a patch of feathers margined with rich olive green.

Before leaving the interesting subject of Rifle-birds I should state
I have omitted the Magnificent fP. maf/nifica ) from the Australian list
because I deem it is the New Guinea variety of P. alherfi. The former
bird may be distinguished (1) by its slightly larger size. (2) by the
crescent of shining yellowish-gi-een on the breast below, the velvety-
black band being broader, and (3) by the shining metallic green on the
head and throat being more " peacock " gi'een in tone. The female of
7i)ngnifira is the brighter brown of the two varieties. For these reasons
I believe the skins and eggs exhibited at the May (1900) meeting of
the Field Natiualists' Club of Victoria by Messrs. G. A. Keartland and
A. Coles as P. mnr/nifica, from Cape York, should be referable
to P. alherfi.

83. MlCRrECA ASSIMILIS.

LESSER BROWN FLYCATCHER.

Gilbert probably procured the first Lesser Brown Flycatcher nearly
sixty years ago. Its nest and eggs remained undescribed until
Mr. Dudley Le Souef visited the gi-eat western territory this (1899)
season. Writing to the " Ibis," he says : " I noticed this bird on two
occasions near York (Western Australia). Its small, compact nest was
found near Katanning during the latter end of October, was situated in a
fork near the end of a horizontal branch, and measured li inches in
diameter by i inch in depth. It was composed of grass, and the
exterior had small pieces of bark fastened on to it with cobwebs, which
made it difficult to distinguish the nest from the branch bearing it.
Tliere were two eggs in the nest, their gromid coloiir being pale blui-sh-
green, with iiTegular, dark, reddish-bro\vn markings, slightly more
numerous on the larger end, and with underlying markings of pale gi'ey.
Dimensions in inches : (1) -67 x '54, (2) -66 x -.52."

85. MiCRCECA PALLIDA.

PALE FLY CATCHER.

The Pale Flycatcher, as its name implies, is a paler coloured bird than
its southern and near ally, from which it may be further distinguished
bv the greater amount of white in the tail feathers.

1076

NESTS A\'D EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

According to Mr. A. J. North, wlio first described its eggs, two nests
were discovered by Mr. A. S. Macgillivray, Leilavale Station, Fullerton
River, North Queensland, December, 1897. They were built on
horizontal branches of gidgea (Acacia ) scrub.

Other nests have since been found in the forest country in the neigh-
boiirhood of Cooktown. One in the collection of Mr. D. Le Souef, taken
11th December, 1899, contains two eggs, and was accompanied by a skin
of one of the parents. Tliis nest, in keeping with those of the other
members of the genus, is small and shallow, composed of yellowish gi'ass,
and ornamented round the outside with scale-like pieces of tea^tree
(Melaleuca) bark, which adhere by means of cobweb. Dimensions in
inches over all, 11 inches by 1} inches in depth ; e^^ cavity, \\ inches by
^, inch deep. Tlie nest was situated just within reach from the gioiuid
in the angle of a forked branchlet of a low molaleuca.

The eggs are oval in form ; texture of shell fine ; surface slightly
glossy ; colour, blviish-grey, spotted and blotched with chestnut and dull
purple. Dimensions in inches : (1) •? x '54, (2) "67 x -53.

Now that the eggs of the foiir Micrcecce have been discovered, it
may be observed that those of the Brown, Lesser Bi-own, and Pale,
as may be expected, resemble each other; but the Lesser Brown has
the siu-face mavldngs apparently more defined, while the egg of the
Lemon-breasted bird is the largest and palest-coloured of all.

111. — Petrceca c.vmpbelli.

"WESTERN SCARLET-BREASTED ROBIN.

In order that the description of the nest and eggs of my namesake
may appear in my book, Mr. D. Le Souef ha.s kindly permitted me to
extract the following from a paper he is forwarding to the " Tl^is " after
his return from Western Australia: — "A nest was found 17th October,
1899. It was a compact, cup-shaped stnictiu-e, composed almost entirely
of fine shreds of bark, the outside being a little coarser in material than
the lining. A few feathers were also woven into the lower portion of
the nest. The exterior was lightly covered with cobwebs, on which were
fastened small, thin flakes of bark, taken off the tree on which the nest
was built. It measures : external diameter, 2f inches ; internal diameter,
13 inches; external depth, 21 inches; internal depth, 1} inches. The
two eggs (clutch) are swollen ovals, having a whitish ground-colour, with
fine, very dirk-brown markings, which are mostly on the larger end.
where they fomi an irreg\dar zone. Tliere are also underlying markings
of grey. " Dimen.sions in inches: (1) -71 x -58, (2) -68 x •.'i4. Tlie
nesting season extends from September to December."

127. SmICRORNIS EI.AVESrENS.

YELLOW-TINTED TREE TIT.

Tliis season (1899) Mr. D. Le Souef received from the forest rountn-
in the neighbourhood of Cooktown a beautiful nest, together will, an

APPENDIX. 10 J y

egg aud ihe skin of lis tmy ;uchitect, takou 2Jud October. Describing
it for the " Ibis, Mr. Lc Souef remarks : " The nest is a bea.utiful
structure, built lu a thick bunch of leaves and flowers at the end of a
bnrnch of red-flowering melalcuca. It is very small, and domed, and
is composed almost eutiiely of the soft, downy, young melaleuca leaves
aud buds, all well bound together with cobwebs among the larger leaves
of the tree, which almost completely hide tin: wonderful structiue. It
is lined at the bottom with a little white down and some yellowish cob-
webs, aud measures, externally: breadth, 1^ inches; depth, 3 inches,
ihe sm;ill entrance is neai' the top, and without any porch. '

140. — Malleus elizabetile. — Campbell.
DARK-BLUE WREiSi.

He/erence. — Ihis, Uctober, lyoo.
Habitat. — King Island (Bass ISlrait}.

Observations. — Some natuiahsts, especially yoimger ones, are apt to
jiunp at conclusions without suihcient proof, while older ones occasionally
take things for granted, as in the case of the Western (Long-billed^
Magpie. Of coiu'es eveiybody knows a Magpie, and the Western bird
was put down as identical with its Eastern congener. So it has been with
the Deautilul Blue Wrens. Those pi'ocui'ed on King Island by the Expe-
dition of the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, twelve years ago,
Were put down by collectors (including myself) a.s Mai urns yuuldi; of
course they could be no other. But i have since obtained a series of
skins of Blue Wrens from Tasmania to the tropics, and find tiie King
Island to be very distinct; in fact tliere is more difference between
It and the other Blue Wrens than the apparent difference between
M. cyuneus aud J/, gouldi.

The cliai-acteristics of the King Island bird ai'e, that it is the largest
of ah, and has a decided darker shade of blue — brilhant ultramarine
being the nearest colour.

The tail is dark-blue, while there is quite a wash of blue on the bufl'y-
white understu^face below the band of velvety-blacK, and on the outer
edges of some of the piimaries. The female is similar to M . cyaneus,
but much larger and slightly darker-brown in coloiu", with a slight bluish
tinge in the feathers of, the taU..

Out of comphment to my wife, who has assisted me much by tran-
scribing and correcting rough drafts of my work (often much interlined,
and not always written like copjier-phite), and who has shown much for-
bearance when the study of my " hobby ' has, I fear, ofttimes ridden
rough-shod over domestic duties, I propose the name M. elizabethce for
the new species or variety, and that it be known on the vernacular list
as the Dark Blue Wren, in contradistinction to Dr. Sharpe's Silvei'y
(Light) Blue W^ren of the tropics.

lojy

.VESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

The greatest favom-ite, and the most famihar object of oui- King
Islaad ramps, was the Dark Blue Wren, not only because of its trilling
Uttle song, but more especially for the rich-coloured plumage of the
male — the beautiful biilhant blue, sot in velvety-black. The birds did
not appear at all shy, but boldly displayed, with tail erect, their lovely
Little bodies from the top of any convenient bush.

A nest I took in tussock gi-ass, near oiu' main camp on the Yellow

Rock Rivulet, is suiiilar to those of other Blue Wrens, but the eggs are

the largest of all the Maluri. Dimensions of the clutch in inches :
o

(1) '7 X '52, (2) 'GS X -bo, (3) '68 x '52. In shape the eggs are rovuidish
ovals; texture of shell fine; smiace slightly glossy; colour, warm or
pinkish-white, lightly spotted and splashed with reddish-browii, the
markings being thickest about the uj:)per quarter.

Comparative dimensions, in inches, of Blue Wrens (males) : —

M. clizabetluB — Length 5-75 ; bill -33 ; wing 2-1 ; tail 2-35 ; tarsus 1-0
ill. goiddi— „ 5 0;,, -33 ; ,, 2-05 ; „ 23 ; ,, -H

M. cijaneus— „ frO ; „ -28 ; „ 2-0 ; „ 2-2_ ; „ -8

M. cijanochlamys ,, 4-75 ; ,, -3 ; ,, 2-0 ; ,, 2-05 ; ,, '75

Dimensions of M. elizabethcB (female): Length 5'5 ; bill 02,
wing 2-08 ; tail 2-3 ; tarsus TO.

163. — Chlamydodera guttata.
YELLOW-SPOTTiiD BOWER BIRD.

That persevering field natiu'ahst, Mr. G. A. Keartland, is to be con
gratulated on receiving the first and only egg (up to the present) of the
rare Guttated Bower Bu'd of the interior. It was collected for him
by Mr. James F. Field, diuing the first week of February (18'J9), from
a frail nest — a few dried bits of cotton-bush, lined with coarse grass
stalks — built m a low bush in the neighbourhood of Alice Sprnigs.

Mr. A. J. Nortli, who caane to Melbomiie to examine various oological
collections, was kindly permitted to describe the egg. Vide " Victorian
Naturalist," vol. xvi., page 10 (1899). The following is his description :
■ It is elongate oval in form, of a faint gi'eenish-grey gi-ound-colour, with
the usual labyrintliine network of zig-zag wavy hair and thread-like loop-
lines, scrolls and figures, crossing and re-crossing each other, so character-
istic of typical eggs of the Chhiiinjdwliru:. In this specimen there ai'e
but veiy few underlying markings, nearly all of them being well defined,
and appearing as if they liad been placed on the shell with a pen dipped
in different shades of umber-brown and violet-gi-oy, the fonner colour
predominating and being more thickly disposed towards the thinner end,
where in some places the lines are confluent and form broad inegular-
shapcd patches and short wavy streaks. The textm-c of the shell is
very fine, and its surface lustreless. Length, 1-56 x 1-02 inches. In
shape, size, colour, and disposition of its markings it cannot be dis-
tinguislu'd from fairly typical eggs of its near ally C iiutcuhiia."

APPENDIX. 1079

305. — Melithrkptis l^tior.
GULDEN -BACKED HONEYEAIER.

Mr. A. J. North, who described a single egg of this bcavUilul
Houeyealer, from Ml-. G. A. Keartland s coUectiou, states : * — " Duiiiig
the first week of Febiiiary, 189'J, JVlr. E. J. Harris took an egg
of this species fx-oin a small cup-shaped uest, built in the drooping Icatj'
twigs of a bauliinia, about ten feet from the ground, aud close to the
junction of the Fitzi-oy and Margaret Rivers, North-west Australia.
It is oval in form, gently tapering towards the smaller end, and is of a
pale, lleshy-bull ground-colom-, wliicli gi-adually passes into a warm
rLddish-bulY on the larger end, whert; there ai-e spots and blotches of a
slightly darker hue, inteniiiugled with underlymg markings of faint
pui-phsh-buff, the suiiace of the shell bemg smooth aud slightly glossy.
ijength, -86 x -61 inches. Tliis egg resembles some of the dehcately-
coloured varieties of those of Ptilntis anricomis."

312. GlYCPHILA SUBOCULARIS

LEAST HONEYEATER.

According to Mr. D. Le Souef, whose collector, Mr. R. Hislop, found
two nests of this small Honeyeater — one 14th June, and the other
3rd October (1899), on the Cape York Peninsula — the fust found uest
" was suspended from a forked branch of a melaleuca, about twenty feet
from the groimd. It is hghtly consti-ucted of fine shreds of bark, luto-
woven with very thin white pieces of so-called paper ( 31e!aUucaJ bark,
aud has a small quantity of cobweb on the outside, which helps to fasten
it to the branch. It is lined with a white flully substance, and measures ;
external diameter, 2^ inches; internal, 1^- inches; external depth, 2^
inches ; internal, 2 inches. The two eggs of the clutch vary both in size
and coloiu", one being pm-e white, with a few faint specks roimd the larger
end, the other being very delicate redchsh-pink, with a faint zone of
reddish markings round the larger end. Dimensions in inches ;
(1) '66 X -5, (2) -63 X -46. ' Mr. Le Souef has dtsci-ibed the eggs of this
bird in the " Ibis," p. 458 (1900).

361. — Entomyza albipennis.
WHITE-QUILLED HONEYEATER.

Mr. D. Le Souef has described the nest and eggs of this fine northcin
species in the "Victorian Naturalist,'' vol. xvi., p. 101 (1899). He has
since received a splendid series of eggs, collected in the forest country
on Cape York Peninsula. The eggs are only abovit half the size of
those of the Blue-faced Honeyeater, and vary in shape from elliptical
to more pointed .specimens. A typical pair is fine in te.xture, slightly
glossy, and a beautiful pinkish-buff, blotched chiefly about the larger end
with rich reddish-brown and dull purple. Dimensions in inches :
(1) ri X -83, (2) 1-1 X -8. There are sometimes three eggs to a clutch.

Chief laying months are October and November.

• " Victorian Naturalist,'' vol. .\\i , p I2 (1S99).

loSo NESTS AND EGGS 01' AUSTRALIAN BIRDS

363. — Philemon argenticeps.

SILVER !>:-OROWNED FElAli BIRD.

Sest. — Similar to that of P. cuniiriilatu^ ; composed of long shreds of
balk, aud liued inside with grass seed-stalks. Dimensions o\'er all,
5 inches by 7 inches in dejjth ; egg cavity, 2^ inches across by 3 inches
deep.

Eijys. — Clutch, two usually ; true oval in shape ; texture, fine ; sur-
face slightly glossy; colour, most delicate pmkish-buff, finely and indis-
tinctly spotted with rufous, purplish-brown, and dull pui'plc, the niarkings
being thickest round Ihe apex. Dimensions in inches of odd (rounehsh)
examijles from the Cape York Peninsula: (1) I'l x '84, (2) I'll x -84;
of a proper pair : (1) MS x -8,(2) 1-16 x -81.

Mr. D. Le Souef described similar- eggs from the same locality before
the Field Natui'ahsts' Club of Victoria, 15th April, 1899, which were
collected by Mr. R. Hislop, in tlie forest country of the Bloomfield River
district, 24th December, 1896. He subsequently received a beautiful
series (the majority remarkable for their delicate light coloimng) from
the same district this (1899) season, taken dming October, November,
and December. In twelve nests, none contained more than a pau- of
eggs except one, which, in addition, had a fine egg of the Koel, concerning
wliicli Mr. Le Souef's collector wrote: — "In the clutch taken 27th
December there was one egg, which, I think, is that of the Fhnders'
Cuckoo, and, strange to say, it waa the fii-st egg laid. It was in the nest
when we found it, and it was not until two or three days later that the
Friar Bird laid her two eggs, as on going back four days afterwards we
found the tlu'ee eggs in the nest."

401. MUNIA PECT0RALI8.

WHITE-BREASTED FINCH.

The eggs are long ovals in shape ; texture fine ; surface without gloss ;
colour, white, with the faintest bluish tinge. A pair from a clutch of
four, taken by Mr. G. A. Keartland, in North-west Austi-alia, measm-es
in inches: (1) -62 x -43, (2) -6 x ■42. The nest was the usual flask-
shaped structure of grass, lined inside with finer material, and was situated
in a bush about ten feet from the ground. Date, end of Febiiiaiy, 1897.

414. — Atrichia clamosa.
NOISY SCRUB BIRD.

To Mr. A. T. Hassell, Western Australia, belongs the honom- of dis-
covering, and to Mr. D. Lc Souef, Melbourne, of describing the first

APPENDIX. I08l

autlienticatod nest and eggs (a long-staiuliiig oological desitleratum) of
the Noisy Scrub Bird. Althoiigli uot known at tlie time, the discovery
of tliis uest wa-s actually made a season sooner than Air. !S. W. Jackson's
discoveiy of the nest and eggs of the eastern species (the ruftscens), in
the Bulabulali Scrubs of New South Wales.

Ml-. Le Souef, who has kindly favotued me with his description,
states : " The uest and eggs were found by Mr. Hassell, in October, 1897,
near iUbauy. He was pa-ssing along a naiTow track through thick scmb
when he heard the bird uttering its loud uote. lie forced his way to
the place, and wheu doing so, suddenly saw the hen* bird fly from what
appeared to be a biuich of grass neai' his feet, but which, on examination,
proved to be tlie nest. It was situated on the ground, alongside the root
of a eucalyptus tree, which was about seven ruches out of the ground.
The uest wa,s dome-shaped, constiiicted of gi'ass and rootlets, with a few
leaves, and lined with a white, downy substance. It measiu'ed :
height, 8 J, inches ; breadth, 5-^ inches ; and contained two eggs (slightly
incubated), swollen oval in shape, ground-colour of reddish-white, with
piu-plish-brown uuu'kings, more numerous on the larger end, where they
arc confluent. The markings beneath the surface are liglit piu-ple.
The eggs measui'c : (1) -9 x -69, (2) -So x -67 inches." Mr Le Souef has
since described the eggs of tliis bii'd in the " Ibis," p. 458 (1900).

433. PODARGUS MARMOKATUS.

MARBLED FROGMOUTH.

Regarding this beautifully marked and smallest of the Australian
Fixltiryi, Mr. D, Le Souef writes : f — It is especially plentiful at Cape
York, North Queensland, and I have also had specimens from some
distance south of Cooktown. They build the usual flat stick-nest, 3^
inches in diameter, generally on a homontal bough, and the bii'd sits
close, and is vei-y dilficult to detect. A nest foimd by Mr. R. Hislop,
12th August, 1898, contained one egg, white in colour, slightly lustrous,
the two ends being nearly of a imifonn size, and measm'ed 144 x I'O
inches."

526. — Neophema splendida.

SCARLET-CHESTED PARRAKEET.

Eygs. — Round in fonii ; textui'e of shell fine ; surface glossy ; colour,

, white, slightly discoloiu'ed, apparently with wood dust of the nest.

Dimensions in inches : (1) '88 x -77, (2) -87 x '77. These eggs are amongst

the largest of the family, coming next in size to those of the Rock

PaiTakeet.

' Presumably. The female of either species of Atrichia has never vet bee
taken.— A.J. C.

t " Ibis," p. 361 (1899).

I082 NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Obstrvations. — During a recent trip to Adelaide, when looking ovei
the collection of my venerable friend, Mr. William White, the pair of eggs
(above described), dated 29th September, 1863, attiucted my attention.
As they are now the type eggs, as far as I am aware, their historj'
given to me by their discoverer, may be interesting. Mr. White was
in the company of Mj-. J. Taylor, of Pudnookna Station, River Murray,
South Australia, and, when stock-hunting to the north-east of the station,
flushed a splendid Scarlet-che.sted Grass Pairakeet from a hole in a
malloo-tree. Mr. White being desirous of securing one of the parents as
well as the eggs, he left, and returned again when the bird was sitting.
Bmding his handkerchief to the end of a long stick, he placed it over the
hole. Then his companion held the stick while he ascended the smooth
tree by the aid of a notched stick placed against it, and secured the bird
(a female) and two eggs. There were four eggs in the nesting hole, but
unfortunately two were broken while Mr. White was awkwardly clinging
to the smooth stem taking them. The bird lived in Mr. White's aviary
for several years, but was always solitary and shy. Mr. White says this
was also his experience of the bird in the bush. They were seen singly
or in pairs in the most scrubby localities, often far from water. Like
the rest of the family, the male has a vei-y feeble, rippling call.

The " Geographical Distribution ' of the following species may be
extended, namely : —

4. — White Goshawk, North-west Australia (R. Hall).

70. — Little Slu'ike Thrush, North-west Australia (Gould).

73. — Ground Cuckoo Shrike. North-west Australia (R. Hall).
267. — Brown Thickhead, North-west Australia (Gould).
276. — W^hite-browed Tree Creeper, Victoria (A. C. Smart).
SOL — Black-chinned Honeyeater, North-west Australia (R. Hall).
315. — Painted Honeyeater, Queensland (Gould).

385.— Masked Wood Swallow. North Queensland (Dr. Macgiliivi-ay).
395. — Painted Finch, North Queensland (Dr. Macgillivray).
400. — Yellow-rumped Finch, North-west Australia (Gould).

ADDITIONAL BREEDING SEASONS.

162. — Spotted Bower Bird — January and February, Cloucurry

district, Queensland (Dr. Macgillivray).
262. — Northern Thickhead — October to February.
366.— Little Friar Bird— October to May.

Note. — With regard to the young of (IcDphdim ncripfa (550) not
being able to fly until the usual age for Pigeons, I should have given
a foot-note reference for remarks (which I did not see until after I liad
written my own) by Dr. Sclater, on some of these birds halched at the
Zoological Gardens, London. Vnli , I'.Z.S , 1892, pp. 76-7.

APPENDIX. 1083

ADDITIONAL BIEDS.
Ercmiornis cartcri, North : Carter Desert Bird.

Rcjciencc. — Victorian Naturalist, vol. xvii., pp. 78 and (13 (igooj.

At the end of my " Obscrvatioiis " on the Tawny Grass Bird
(No. ISO), I made some remarks on one of these birds (dated 16th April,
1898), which Mr. Carter sent me from Point Cloatcs. I took it to be
a bleached or anomalous form of Jlci/ii/urun, but Mr. Nortli in Iris
technical description states : — " The slender bill, short tarsi, small feet,
and abnormally long upper and under tail coverts which conceal the
greater jwrtiou of its long and broad t^il feathers, will serve to distin-
guish it from any other Australian genus."

Barnardius macijiUivrmji, North : Macgillivray Parrakeet.
Re/crvnce. — Victorian Naturalist, vol. xvii. p. 91 (1900).

This new Parrakeet is from tlie Gulf of Carpentaria district, and in
general colouruig resembles B. zunariiis and B. occidcnfalix, but has the
head almost uniform in colour with the gi'cenish upper parts, instead of
black or blackish-brown as in the other species named.

Turnix oiivii, Rothschild ; Olive Quail.

Reference. — Ibis, p. 375 (igoo).

Habitui. — North Queensland. Mostly nearlv allied to T. castanonoiii . but
is larger in size.

Trinomial nomenclature has been employed to describe four other
birds doubtfully sub-specific, from North Queensland, namely : —

Artamus leucogastcr jjaivirostris, Hartert.
Zosterops westeniensis vergeta, Hartert.

Reference. — Nov. Zool. vol. vi., p. 423 (1899).

Dacclo gigas minor, Robinson.

Trichoglossus uoi-ce-JioUandicB scptcntrionalis, Robinson.

Reference.— Bull. Liverp. Mus. vol. ii , p. 115 (1900).

In all probability Australians will not take kindly to three-fold
names. Such terms do not tend to popularise ornithology. However,
with the student the trinomial system will open up such very large
questions regarding numerous Australian birds, as, whether some other
species should not with equal right be divided, or again, whether others
now separated on exceechngly slender grounds should not be amalga-
mated. These questions may very well be left to (say) a select commit-
tee of the proposed Australian Ornithologists' Union to settle.

ALPHABETICAL INDEX,

1085

Adelaide Rosella

Alliatross, Black-browetl

Flai-hillt-a

„ Short-tailed

,, Sooty

., Wandering

„ White-capped

„ Yellow-nosed

Albert Lyre Bird

Albert Rifle Bird

Alexandra Parrakeet

Allied Fruit Pigeon

Allied Petrel

American Grey-rumped Sandpiper

Ara Egret

Avocet, Red-necked

B

Babbler

„ Chestnut-crowned

,, Red-breasted

,, White- browed

Bald Coot

Bald Coot. Blue

Banded Finch ...

Banded Honeyeater

Banded Stilt

Banded Wren ...

Banksian Cockatoo
Banks' Dove Petrel ..

Banks' Prion ...

Bare-eyed Cockatoo ,,.

Barnard Brush Turkey

Barred Cuckoo Shrike
Barred-rumped Godwit

Barred-shouldered Dove

Bartram Sandpiper

Beautiful Parrakeet

Bee Eater

Bell Bird

Bell Miner

Betcherrygah ,

No. of
bird

No. of
page

B

No. of No. of
bird page

496

631

Bittern

. 71S

967

693

926

Little Mangrove

■ 7'4

963

695

934

,,

Little Yellow

■ 7'5

964

692

925

Minute

. 716

9C.5

697

937

,,

Yellow-necked Mangrove .

• 717

966

691

921

Black

and White Fantail ...

94

tl6

694

929

Black

and White Swallow ..

379

454

6q6

935

Black

Butcher Bird

241

290

418

523

Black

Cockatoo

474

602

jfi

76

I'.lark

Cormorant

. 720

971

489

623

,,

Little

. 721

972

536

667

Black

Crow Shrike

.5:

62

667

87S

Black

Duck

■ 751

•"33

625

812

Black

Falcon

24

33

710

957

Black

Honeyeater

■ 293

354

617

S04

Black

Moor Hen

• 586

754

Black

Oyster Catcher

■ 599

778

Black

Petrel

. 676

899

220

222

270
273

Black
Black

Swan

Tree Creeper

■ 741
. 270

1014
329

223

274

Black-backed Magpie

•• 237

290

221

272

Black-backed Quail

. 566

73"

588

--7

Black-hacked Tree Creeper

. 271

330

587

397

756
48.^

Black-backed Wren

Black-banded Fniit Pigeon ...

■ 141

■ 533

169
663

294
610

355
ao3

Black-banded White Face ...
Black-bellied Storm Petrel ...

. 236
. 664

289
S74

143

172

Black-billed Spoonbill

. 701

946

475

606

Black-breasted Buzzard

.. 18

2^

687

915

Black-breasted Plover

.. 603

7S4

687

9>5

Black-breasted Quail

.. 567

730

48=

613

Black-breasted Song Lark ...

.. 224

=75

559

714

Black-browed Albatross

■■ 693

926

78

99

Black

capped Tree Runner

.. 280

34"

621

S08

Black

cheeked Falcon

22

31

541

fi75

Black-chinned Honeyeater...

. 301

363

629

815

.,

1082

515

645

Black-eared Cuckoo

.. 454

575

43^

S45

Black-faced Cuckoo Shrike ...

74

96

=52

3'o

Black-faced Flycatcher

. loS

132

35"

416

Black-faced Wood Swallow ...

.. 38S

471

528

f.56

Black-fronted Dottrel

.. 6l2

795

io86

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

B

Black-headed Honeyeater ...
Black-headed Log Runner ...
Black-headed Pardalote

Black-naped Tern

Black-necked Stork
Black-rumped Grass Finch .,-
Black-shouldered Kite

Black tailed Godwil

Black-tailed Native Hen
Black-tailed Parrakeet
Black-tailed Thickhead
Black-throated Butcher Bird
Elack-throated Fly Eater ...
Black-throated Grass Finch
Black-throated Grehe
Black-throated Whip Bird ...
Black-vented Ground Bird
Black-winged Crow Shrike . .

Blood Honeyeater

Blood-s.tained Cockatoo

Blue Bald Coot

Blue Flycatcher

Blue Kingfisher

Blue Petrel

Blue Wren

,, ,, Long-tailed

Elue-bellicd Lorikeet

Blue-billed Duck

Blue-breasted Pitta

Blue-cheeked Parrakeet
Blue-faced Honeyeater

Blue- faced Lorilet

Blue- winged Grass Parrakeet
Blue-winged Teal

Boobook Owl

Booby -■

Bourke Grass Parrakeet
Bower Bird, Fawn-breasted

,, ,, Golden

,, ,, Great

,, ,, Guttated

., ,, Queensland

,, ,, Satin

,. ,, Spotted

„ Tooth-billed ...
„ Yellow-spotted
Bower Shrike Thrush

Bridled Honeyeater

Bristle Bird

,, . Long-billed

,, ,, Rufous

0. of No of

B

No. of No, 0

Mrd page

binl

page

30*

366

Broadbent Ground Thrush ...

... 158

191

205

253

Broadbent Honeyeater

■■■ 3'4

377

374

447

Broad-billed Bronze Cuckoo

... 4S6

580

650

849

Broad-billed Dove Petrel ...

... 686

9'4

719

969

Broad-billed Flycatcher

... 98

122

409

496

Broad-billed Prion

... 680

9'4

■9

27

Broad-tailed Tit

... 187

233

622

809

Bronze Cuckoo ...

■■■ 457

582

585

752

Broad-billed

- 456

580

400

625

Little

... 45S

584

25S

31S

,, ,, Narrow-billed

• .. 455

5-6

242

301

Bronze-winged Pigeon

■■■ 545

680

.36

161

Brown Flycatcher

82

105

406

404

Lesser

... 8j

106

735

1002

107s

21S

26S

Brown Fly Eater

... '33

'59

210

2S«

Erown Gannet

... 729

9S8

50

61

Brown Hawk

27

37

2ql

352

Brown Hawk, Striped

... 26

36

4S3

C14

Blown Honeyeater

... 311

374

587

756

Brown Kingfisher

... 441

55'

96

120

Brown Petrel

... 673

895

437

547

Brown Quail

... 562-3

924

685

913

Brown Scrub Wren

,,, 202

251

137

'6.1

Brown Shrike Thrush

,„ 67

9'

130

t69

Brown Tail

,,, t86

232

4f'3

592

Brown Thickhead

,.. 267

328

760

1051

,, ..

ro82

421

5=«

Brown Tit

... 185

230

500

634

Brown Tree Creeper

... 274

334

360

429

Brown-backed Honeyeater ...

■ ■• 3'3

376

47'

599

Brown-breasted Flyeater

... '3'

158

521

6^9

Brown-headed Honeyeater ...

- 303

364

"54

1042

Brown-headed Petrel

... 6S0

907

3°

43

Brown-winged Tern

... 646

S42

729

988

Brush Turkey

••■ 558

708

520

649

Barnard

■•■ 559

714

it)0

200

Brush Bronze-winged Pigeon

... 546

683

169

212

Brush Wattle Bird

■■■ 357

42,i

If,4

203

Buff-bellied Shrike Thrush ..

... 68

9'

■ 63

202

Buff-breasted Scrub Wren ...

.,, 199

249

IO7S

Buff-breasted Fly Kater

„■ 1,34

160

165

204

Buff-rumpcd Tit

■ „ '93

239

150

191

Buff-sided Robin

,,. 122

'5"

162

loS

Bush Chat, Orange-fronted ..

.„ 23a

285

1082

,, „ Tri-coloured

,., 23'

284

167

207

,, ,, White-fronted

... 230

382

163

202

.. ,. Yellow-ljreasted

••■ 233

286

69

02

Bush Lark

... 412

SO'

324

38S

,, Lesser

... 4'3

503

172

2T8

Bustard

,., 591

762

1-3

219

Butcher Bird

... 2(6

304

'74

319

1 „ „ Black

... 341

299

ALPHABETICAL INDEX.

1087

B

Butcher Binl, Blnck-thrnated

„ ., Grey

Pied

„ ,. Rufous

,, ,, Silver-backed

,, ,, Spalding

,, „ White-winged

Buzzard Eagle, White-eyed
,, Black-breasted

Campbell Parrakeet

Cape Barren tioose

Cape Petrel

Cape York Owl

Cape York Thickhead

Carter Desert Bird

Carter Honeyeatcr

Caspian Tern

Cassowary

Cat Bird

,, „ Spotted

Caterpillar Catcher

„ Pied
,, „ White-shouldered

Channel Bill

Chat. Orange-fronted Bush ...
, , Tricoloured Bush

White-fronted Bush ...
„ Vellow-breasted Bush

Chatterer

Chestnut-backed Ground Bird
Chestnut-backed Quail
Chestnut-backed Rail
Chestnut-bellied Quail
Chestnut breasted Cuckoo ...
Chestnut-breasted Finch
Chestnut-breasted Ground Bird
Chestnut-breasted White Face
Chestnut-crowned Babbler , ,
Chestnut-crowned Parrakeet
Chestnut-eared Finch
Chestnut-faced Owl ...
Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon
Chestnut-rumped Ground Wren
Chestnut-rumped Pardalote
Chestnut-rumped Tit ...
Chough, W^hite-winged
CiDuamon-coloured Ground Bird-.
Coach-whip Bird

N'o. of No. of 1
bird page

c

No. of No.nf
bird page

242

3"!

Cockatoo

, Bare-eytd

... 482

613

M7

3"5

,,

Banksian

-. 475

606

243

302

,,

Black

— 474

602

249

306

,.

Biood-stained

... 483

614

245

3"4

.,

Darapier

... 486

620

248

306

„

Gang-gaiif^

-.. 479

610

244

303

1,

Glossy

... 478

609

12

16

Great-billed

... 476

607

18

25

Long-billed

... 485

619

,,

Palm

... 472

600

„

Parrakeet

... 487

621

,,

Pink

... 481

612

Red-tailed

■ . 477

60S

4QS

630

J,

Rose-breasted

... 484

617

745

1021

,,

White

... 480

611

684

911

Wliite-tailed

... 473

60 1

35

47

Cockerel! Honej'eater

■■■ 333

397

266

327

Comb-crested Jacan.i

... 596

773

1083

Common

Heron

... 704

95"

339

405

Common

Sandpiper

... 626

812

641

833

Common

Shoveller

... 755

1043

765

1069

Cook Pe

trel

... 682

90S

161

196

Coot

■■ 589

758

16:1

IQ5

„ Bald

588

757

79

100

„ Bl

ue Bald

.- 587

756

.. 81

104

Corella

. 485

619

1 80

103

Cormorant, Black

... 720

971

. 461

588

,,

Little

... 724

977

■ 232

285

,,

Little Black

... 721

972

231

2S4

,,

Pied

- 723

975

■ 230

2Sj

White-breasted

... 722

973

233

2 86

Corn Crake

... 578

744

220

270

Coucal

... 4O2

590

207

256

Ciake,

Corn

... 57S

744

569

733

,,

Little

... 5S0

747

■ 576

742

,,

Spotless

... 581

74S

565

72S

,,

Spotted

- ■ 570

745

453

574

„

White-browed

582

749

399

4S7

Crane

... 59"

760

. 209

i!7

Creeper

Black Tree

.,, 270

329

23s

289

Black-backed Tree

... 271

3.10

222

273

,,

Brown Tree

... 274

3.34

517

647

,,

Red-browed Tree ...

■ ■• 275

335

■ 306

483

,,

Rufous Tree

... 272

331

40

50

White-browed Tree

... 276

336

■ 549

688

,,

White-throated Tree

■■ 273

332

■ 213

263

Crescent Honeyeater

■ ■ ■ 345

411

375

448

Crested

Hawk

21

29

190

236

Crested

Penguin

... 73S

too7

■ S3

'5

Crested

Pigeon

... 555

695

208

256

Crested Tern

,. 644

837

.. 217

265

,, Lesser

643

S35

io88

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Crimson Parrakeet

Crimson-winged Lory

Crimson Finch...

Crow

Shrike, Pied

Black
,, ,, Black-winged

Grey

Hill

,, ,, Leaden

,, ., Sooty

Cuckoo, Black-eared

,, Broad-hiUecl Bronze

,, Bronze

,, Chestnut-breasted

,, Fan-tailed

,, Little Bronze

„ Narrow-billed Bronze

,, Oriental

Pallid

,, Rufous-throated
„ Square-tailed
Cuckoo Shrike, Barred

,, „ Black-faced

,, „ Ground

,, ,, Little

Small-billed
Wliitr-iicUied

Curie

Stint

D

Dampier Cockatoo
Dark-blue Wren

Darter

Desert Bird, Carter

Desert Wren . .

Diamond Bird ..,

Divinp Petrel ..,

Dollar Bird

Doitiel

,, Black-fronted

,, Double-banded

,, Hooded

,, Larec Sand

,, MonRolian Sand

,, Oriental

,. Red-capped

Red-kneed
,, Ringed

No. of No. of 1
bird page

D

494

629

Double-banded Dottrel

402

627

Dove. Barred-shouldered

411

499

,, Ground

44

54

Little

46

58

Dove Petrel

51

62

Dove Petrel, Broad billed

.50

61

Banks

48

60

Drongo

47

59

Duck, Black

49

60

Blue-Billed

51

62

Freckled

454

575

Mountain

4S6

.s8o

Musk . .

457

582

Pink-eared

453

574

Plumed Whistling

451

568

Whistling

458

584

White-eyed

4.SS

576

.. Wood

449

563

Dusky Fantail

45"

564

Dusky Robin

459

580

Dusky Honeyeater

45=

57.:

Dusty Miner

78

99

74
7.3

,j6

95

E

1082

Eagle-Hawk

77

98

„ Little

75

97

Wedge-tailed

-(,

,S

Whistling

filS

8n5

,, White-bellied Sea

6.11

820

White-eyed Buzzard
White-headed Sea
Eastern Scrub Robin

4S6

620

Eastern Swallow

14"

iGq

Edible-nest Swiftlet ...

1077

Egret

7 = 5

979

Egret, Aru

ir.S,

,, Lesser

jjS

jS I

„ Pied

•!7I

44 t

„ Plumed

U.)n

019

V.mw

415

544

,. Spotted

(.U

708

„ (Extinct)

f.IJ

795

Einii Wnii

606

-90

,. Kufnus-crnwiM'd

613

797

608
601)

79=
793

F

. 607

791

Fairy Dove Petrel

611

794

Faiiy Martin

fton

780

Fairy Penguin

firo

793

Fairy Prion

Jo. nf No. of

l.il.1

page

606

790

541

675

54=

676

543

678

6»S

916

086

914

687

9IS

63

8s

751

1033

760

lOJI

758

1049

'50

1030

761

1053

757

1046

748

1027

747

1025

759

1050

746

1023

88

112

119

147

295

356

35=

421

'5

20

13

If.

!-■

16

M

10

-'t4

262

.177

45"

4=6

533

7^6

95=

710

957

7'i

958

700

057

7"5

051

762

lOj.'i

763

i"f>6

764

106R

17.1

-■'4

6Sq glS

ALPHABETICAL INDEX.

1089

Fakf.'ii, Blatk-chcckcd

BlaL-k

,, Grey

„ Little

Fanlail, Black and White ...

„ Dusky

,, Northern

„ Pheasant

,, Rufous

., Western

„ White-fronted

,, Wliite-shafied

White-tailed

Wood

I'au-tailed Cuckoo

I'asciated Honeyeaier
Kawn-breasted Bower Bird ...
F.nvn-breasted Kingfisher

Fiery Parrakeet

Fig Bird

,, ,, Yelluw-bcllied

Field Wren

„ Little

,, ,, Striated
1-inch, Banded

,, Black-rumpcd Grass

„ Black-throated Grass

,, Chestnut-breasted

,, Chestnut-eared

,, Crimson

,, Fire-tailed ,

,, Gouldian Grass

,, Long-tailed Grass

,, Masked Grass

„ Painted

„ Plum-head

„ Red-browed

,, Red-eared

,, Red-faced

,, Ringed

,, Spotted-sided

,, White-breasted

,, White-eared Grass ..
,, Yellow-nimped

Fire- tailed Finch

Flame- breasted Robin
Flat-billed Albatross
Fleshy-footed Petrel
Flock Pigeon

69

No. of No. o( I
bird page

F

33

3'

I'luwer Pecker

34

33

Flycatcher, Black-faced

23

33

Blue

-5

34

Broad-billed

94

I IS

„ Brown

88

112

,, ,, Lesser .

91

114

,, >• .,

93

116

,, Frill-necked

89

112

,, Leaden-coloured

87

no

,, Lemon-breasted

93

116

Little

86

108

Pale

9.!

'■5

,, ,,

90

114

Pearly

45"

568

Pied

331

395

„ Restless ...

166

206

„ Satin

443

555

Shining

JOS

638

,, Spectacled

61

82

White-bellied .

62

84

,, White-eared

337

379

,, Yellow-breasted

329

381

Fly

Eater, Black-throated .

326

278

,,

,, Brown

397

485

,,

,, Brown-breasted

409

496

„

,, Buff-breasted

406

494

,,

,, Green-backed

399

4S7

,,

Grey

396

4«3

,,

,, Large-billed

411

499

„

,, Southern ...

393

479

White-throated

4:0

497

Fly

Robin

40s

493

Forest Kingfisher

■ 407

495

Forster Petrel

395

481

Forty-spotted Pardalote

1082

Freckled Duck

402

489

Freckled Frogmouth

■ 403

490

Friar Bird

• 394

480

„

,, Helmeted

• 404

492

..

„ Little

• 39^

486

,.

„

■ 393

478

.,

,, Silvery-crowned

. 401

489

„

„

1080

„

,, Yellow-throated

. 408

496

Frigate Bird

. 400

488

., Lesser

1082

Frill-necked Flycatcher

393

47>l

Frogmouth, Freckled ...

112

■36

Marbled

• 695

934

„

. 668

88n

„ Plumed

■ 547

684

Tawny

No.ot
bird

\o. of
page

367

437

108

'3-'

96

I3U

98

133

82

105

S3

106

■07s

■03

US

95

■19

84

107

lOI

126

85

108

■075

109

■34

102

126

UX3

■ 24

97

121

104

129

105

■30

106

■3>

107

■3-'

99

■■13

136

161

■33

■59

'31

■S8

134

160

■35

161

129

■S6

■3-2

■ss

■30

■57

I.-8

■55

257

3^7

444

556

672

894

376

449

758

1049

432

540

362

43-

364

434

366

43f'

1082

363

434

108a

365

435

730

989

731

991

■03

128

433

540

433

542

1081

430

538

43 >

539

logo

NESTS AND EGGS 01' AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

No. of NO. of
bird page

Fruit Pigeon, Allied

„ Black-banded
„ Purple-breasted
,, Purple-crowned
„ Red-crowned
„ Rose-crowned
White-headed
Fulvous-fronted Honeyeater
Fuscous Honeyeater

Q

Galah

Gang-Gang Cockatoo
Gannet

„ Brown

,, Masked

,, Red-legged

Garganey Teal

Gay-tinted Honeyeater

Giant Petrel

Gilbert Variegated Wren

Glossy Cockatoo

Glossy Ibis

Godwit, Barred-ruraped
Black-tailed

Golden Bower Bird

Golden Plover, Lesser
Golden-backed Honeyeater

Golden-shouldered Parrakeet

Goose, Pied

,, Cape Barren

Goose Teal, Green

,, ,, White-quilled

Goshawk

„ Grey

„ Lesser

„ Lesser White

Red

White

Gouldian Grass Finch

Goydcr Grass Wren

Grass Bird

,, ,, Tawny

Grass Finch, Black-rumped
Black-throated
Gouldian
Long-tailed
Masked
White-cared

536
■533
535
534
Si^
533
539
308

323

667
663
666
664
661
66j
672
370
385

484

617

479

610

7j6

981

--■9

988

7^7

985

728

987

754

1042

306

369

683

9C9

149

177

478

609

700

944

621

808

622

809

169

212

6oi

788

305

368

1082

SI6

646

742

1017

745

I02I

743

1019

744

1020

6

6

3

4

7

8

5

6

1082

9

10

4

4

410

497

■78

22J

179

324

180

225

409

49O

406

494

410

497

40s

493

407

495

408

496

G

No. of No of
bird page

Grass Owl 43 53

Grass Parrakeet 523 651

,, ,, Blue- winged 531 649

,, ,, Boiu^ke ... 530 649

,, ,, Orange-bellied 523 652

,, ., Red- shouldered ... 525 654

,, ,, Scarlet-chested 526 654

ic8i

Warbling ... 528 656

Glass Warbler 183 2^7

Grass Wren 175 3-"i

,, ,, Goyder 178 2J3

,, „ Large- tailed ... 177 223

,, „ Striated 176 222

Great Bower Bird ... ... ... 164 203

Great Sandpiper 635 S21

Great-billed Cockatoo ... ... 476 607

Great-billed Heron ... ... ... 703. 950

Great-winged Petrel 677 902

Greater Brown Quail 564 737

Grebe, Black-throated 735 1002

,, Hoarj'- headed 736 1003

Tippet 737 1004

Green Goose Teal 743 1019

Green Parrakeet 498 633

Green Pigeon, Little 544 679

Green-backed Fly Eater 135 161

Green-backed White Eye 287 350

Green-leek Parrakeet 488 633

Greenshank 628 814

Greensbank, Little 623 810

Grey Butcher Bird 347 305

Grey Crow Shrike 48 60

Grey Falcon 33 33

Grey Fly Eater 129 156

Grey Goshawk 3 4

Grey Heron 704 950

Grey Jumper 5a 63

Grey Noddy 651 850

Grey Plover 604 786

Grey Shrike Thrush 65 88

Grey Teal 753 <o39

Grey-backed Storm-Petrcl ... 662 871

Grey-breasted Shrike Robin ... 255 315

Grey breasted Wood Swallow ... 386 469

Grey-rumped Sandpiper 624 811

Grey-rumped American Sandpiper... 635 813

Grcy-rumpcd Swiftlct 4^5 S3'

Grcy-lailcd Thickhead 261 323

Ground Bird, Black-vented 310 058

,, „ Chestnut-backed ... 207 256

,, „ Cinnamon-coloured 308 356

ALPHABETICAL INDEX.

I09I

Q

Ground Bird, ChfsUiut-brcaslcd

,, ,, Northern

„ ,, Spotted

Grouud Cuckoo Shrike

Ground Dove

Ground Lark

Ground Parrakeet

Ground Thrush

,, „ liroadbcnt

,, ,, Large-billed

,, „ Russet

Ground Wren, Chestnut-rumped

,, „ Rufous-rumped

Gull, Silver

„ Pacific

Gull-billed Tern

Gulliver White Eye

Guttated Bower Bird

H

Hardhead

Harrier, Spotted

„ or Swamp Hawk ...
Hawk, Crested

,, Brown

,, Eagle

,, Sparrow

„ Striped Brown

„ Swamp

Helmeted Honeyeater

Friar Bird

Hen, Native

„ Black-tailed Native
Heron, Common

„ Great-billed

„ Grey

„ Night

„ Pacific

Reef

„ White-fronted

,, White-necked

Hill Crow Shrike

Hoary-headed Grebe

Honeyeater, Banded

Black

„ Black-chinned

„ Black-headed ...

» Blood

„ Blue-faced

No. of No. of
bird p-iRC

JO()

-■57

310

=58

3C6

-•54

73

'i.S

IliSj

54--

(•-

38=

4.-''

5 -JO

65S

155

184

158

191

■ 56

■ 88

■57

190

215

=63

216

264

656

S60

657

862

640

830

290

35=

■63

202

Honey

21

29

27

37

to

II

8

9

26

36

2

2

335

400

364

434

584

752

585

752

704

950

703

950

704

950

7>3

962

708

955

712

959

707

954

708

955

47

59

736

1003

294

355

=93

354

301

363

10S2

30*

366

291

352

360

429

H

No. of No. of
t)ird page

calrx

, Bridled

3^4

388

Broadbent

314

377

Brown

3"

374

Brown-backed

313

376

Browu-lieaded

303

364

Carter

339

405

Cockerell

333

397

Crescent

345

411

Dusky

■ 295

356

Fasciated

331

395

Fulvous-fronted

308

370

Fuscous

322

38s

Gay-tinted

3c6

369

Golden-backed

305

368
1079

Helmeted

33S

400

Keartland

337

402

Least ...

31a

375
1079

Lesser Yellow-spotted

321

384

Long-billed

347

413

Moustached

349

415

Painted

313

377
10S2

Pied

3lS

380

Red-headed

292

353

Red-throated

316

378

Rufous-breasted

317

379

Singing

326

390

Spiny-cheeked

359

427

Streak-naped

329

394

Striped

307

369

Strong-billed

302

364

Varied

337

392

Warty-faced

319

381

Wattle-checked

336

401

Western White-naped

299

36.

White-bearded

346

412

White-breasted

310

373

\Vhite-cheeked

348

4«4

White-eared

332

396

White-fronted

309

372

White-gaped

344

410

White-naped

298

359

White-plumed

338

403

White-quilled

361

432

1079

White-throated

300

362

Yellow

343

408

Yellow-eared

333

386

Yellow-faced

3=8

392

Yellow-fronted

341

407

iog2

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

H

HniicyeattT, Yellow- plumed...

,, Yellow-spotled

„ Yellow-streaked

,, Yellow-throated

„ Yellow-tinted ...

„ Yellow-tufted ...

Hooded Dottrel

Hooded Robin

Ibis, Glossy
,, Straw-necked
„ White

Jabiru

Jacana, Comb-crested
Jackass, Laughing
Jumper, Grey ...

K

Keartland Hoiieycater
Kestrel, Nankeen

King Lory

Kingfisher, Blue
,, Brnwu

,, Fawn-breasted

Forest
., Leach

Little
,, Mangrove

,, Purple

,, Red-backed

,, Sacred

„ White-tailed

Yellow-billed

Kite

,, Black-shouldered
,, Letter-winged
„ Square-tailed

Knot

Kor!

Large Sand Dottrel
Lurgc-billed Bristle Bird
Largc-biltcd Fly Later

'o. of No. of
bird page

340

406

320

383

325

389

330

394

342

408

334

398

6.3

797

117

144

700

944

695

94 J

698

940

719 f)6y

596 773

44" 551

5> f>i

337

40J

a8

38

493

6.'8

437

547

44'

55"

443

555

444

556

443

554

439

55"

447

560

438

549

445

557

446

558

448

5<i>

440

550

16

22

'9

37

20

38

17

»3

634

8jo

460

586

6o«

70J

173

319

13a

■S8

Large-billed Ground Thrush
Large-billed Scrub Wren
Large-billed Thickhead

Large-headed Robin

Large-tailed Grass Wren

Large-tailed Nightjar

Lark, Black-breasted Song ...

,, Bush

,, Ground

,, Lesser Bush

,, Magpie

,, Rufous Song

Laughing Jackass

Leach Kingfisher

Leaden Crow Shrike

Leaden-coloured Flycatchci-
Least Honeyeater

Leather Head

Lemon-breasted Flycatcher
Lesser Brown Flycatcher ...

Lesser Bush Lark

Lesser Crested Tern

Lesser Egret

Lesser Frigate Bird
Lesser Golden Plover
Lesser Goshawk
Lesser Large-headed Robin

Lesser Masked Owl

Lesser Noddy

Lesser Pitta

Lesser Rufous-brcastcd

Shrike Thrush

Lesser White Goshawk

Lesser White-backed Magpie
Lesser YcUow-spntted Hnneyca
Letter-winged Kite ...
Lrwin Rail, Slate-breasted
Litlle Black Cormorant
Little Bronze Cuckoo

Little Cormorant

Little Crake

Little Cuckoo Shrike

L.tllc Dove

Little Eagle

Little Falcon

Little Field Wren

Liulr Flycatcher

Little Friar Bird

No. of
Ibird

No. of

paec

15<i

188

198

247

s69

3=8

"3

1.50

177

223

4-'7

534

2-'4

'75

41-'

501

38-'

459

4>3

5U3

64

87

-•-'5

276

441

551

44-'

554

49

60

95

119

i"

375

1079

362

43-!

84

107

83

106

■07s

413

5>>3

f'43

835

711

958

731

99"

6>.S

788

7

8

124

■51

4'

5>

'553

854

42U

5-6

72

94

5

6

1082

239

295

321

384

JU

28

574

739

721

972

• 458

584

7^4

977

■ 58"

747

77

98

• 543

67S

11

■5

25

34

. 229

281

. loi

126

. 3f>6

43''

,

loSa

ALPHABETICAL INDEX.

No. of No. of
bird page

Little Green Pigeon

Liuic Grecn:>hank

Little Kingfisher

Little Lorikeet

Little Maiigro\'e Bittern

Little Nightjar

Little Penguin

Little Quail

Little Shrike Thrush

Little Stint

Little Til

Little Wattle Bird

Little Whimhrel

Little Wood Swallow

Little Yellow Bittern

Log Runner, Black-headed ...

., ,, Spine-tailed

Long-billed Bristle Bird
Long-billed Cockatoo
Long- billed Honey eater

Long- billed Magpie

Long-billed Reed Warbler ...
Long-billed Stone Plover
Long-tailed Blue Wren
Long-tailed Grass Finch
Lorikeet, Blue-bellied

„ Little

,, Musk

,, Purple-crcwned

„ Red-collared

,, Red-crowned

,, Scaly- breasted

Swift

„ Varied

Lorilet, Blue-faced

,, Red-faced

Lory, Crimson-winged

„ Red-winged

.. King

Lovely Wren

Lurid 0\\\

Lyre Bird

„ Albert

,, ., Victoria

M

MacgiUivray Parakeet

Magpie, Black-backed

», Lesser White-backed

„ Long-billed

,, White-backed

Magpie Lark

• 544

■ <"3

■ 439
, 469
. 7"4

-134
739
57'
70

<i3l
■83

358
6jo
390
7'5
205
204
■73
485
347
240
154
593
■39
4"5
4''>3
4611
467
468
464
466
465
527
466
471
470
492
491
493
148

32
41O
418

417

679
81.1
550
597
96J

54-'
lOIn

734
92
I0S2
818
228
426
S.,6
474

964
253

25'
anj
019

413

2q6
'8j
76S
lOy
493
59->
597
595
595
593
595
594
655
595
599
598
627
626
628
176
45
S07

523
510

237
239
240
238
64

1083
29a
295
296
292
87

M

Mallee Fowl ... ... ,

Mallee Parrakeet

Mangrove Bittern, Little

„ ,, Yellow-necked

Mangrove Kingfisher

Manucode

Many-coloured Parrakeet

Marbled Frogiiiouth

Marbled Owl

Marsh Tern

Martin, Fairy

Martin, Tree

Masked Gannet

Masked Grass Finch

Masked Owl

Masked Plover

Masked Wood Swallow

Miner

Bell

Dusty

,, Yellow

Yellow-throated

Minute Bittern ... .,

Mistletoe Bird

Mongolian Sand Dottrel

Moor Hen, Black

,, Rutous-tailed

Mountain Duck

Moustached Honeyeater

Musk Duck

Musk Lorikeet

Mutton Bird

N

Naked-eyed Partridge Pigeon

Nankeen Kestrel

Narrow-billed Bronze Cuckoo

Native Companion

Native Hen

„ Black-tailed

Night Heron

Nightjar, Large-tailed

Little

„ Spotted

,, White-throated

Night Parrakeet

Noddy

,, Grey

,, Lesser

„ White-capped

1093

No. of No. 01
bird page

SS7
509
7'4
7'7
447
57
518
433

31
639
381
380
727
407

39
602
385

351
35°
352
354
353
716
367
609
586
5S3

693
640
963
966
56.,
78
647
542
loSi

45
829
457
450
985
495

50
782
466
1082
420
416
421
423
4-'2

965

437
793
754
75'

750 1030

349 4'5

761 1053

467 595

669 S82

551

691

28

38

455

576

590

75.)

584

75 -•

585

752

7'3

962

427

534

434

542

429

536

428

535

530

659

652

851

6s I

850

653

854

654

856

1094

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

N

No. of No. of
bird paye

P

No. of No. of
bird page

Noisy Scrub Bird

■ .(M

5"4
-)So

64.!

Painted Honeyeater

315

I

377
8j

North Parrakeet

• 512

Pain

ed Quail

5OS

731

Northern Fantail

• 9'

114

Painted Snipe

637

8a&

Ground Bird

. 210

=58

Pale

Flycatcher

85

108

1075

Oriole

• S8

79

"

,,

Thickhead

.. 262

323

Pale

Scrub Robin

213

262

io8j 1

Pale

-bellied White Eye

28.S

3.i'

l)f.S

Pale-headed Parrakeet

499

633

Nutmeg Pigeon

.. .S.^7

Pallid Cuckoo

450

564

Palm Cockatoo

■ 47-

600

Pan

lyan Tern

. 646

842

o

Parra

. 596

773

Parrakeet, Alexandra

. 489

623

Olive Quail

1083

„ Beautiful

. 515

645

Olive Thickhead

... 26s

326

BUlck-tailed

. 490

625

(Jrange-backed Wren

... 152

I So

,, Blue-cheeked

5CK)

('34

Orange-bellied Grass Parrakeet

523

65i

,, Blue-winged Grass

. 521

649

Orange-fronted Bush Chat ...

... 232

285

,, Bourke Grass ...

. 520

649

Orange-tipped Pardalote

... 36')

442

,, Campbell

. 495

630

Orange-winged Sittella

... 277

337

,, Chestnut-crowned

• 517

647

Orange-winged Tree Runner

... 277

337

,, Cockatoo

.. 487

6ji

Oriole

(hi

81

,, Crimson

.. 494

62Q

,, Northern

... 58

79

,, Fiery

. 505

638

„ Yellow

... 59

80

,, Golden-shouldered

. •■'(•

646

Oriental Cuckoo

... 449

563

Grass

.. 522

651

Oriental Dottrel

... 607

79'

,, Green

.. 498

633

,, Pratincole

..- 595

77«

Green-leek

., 48S

623

Osprey, White-headed

... 29

40

,, Ground

.. 529

i5j8

Owl, Boobook

... 30

43

Mallee

509

640

„ Cape York

... 35

47

„ Many-coloured

.. 5>8

64-

„ Chestnut-faced

... 40

50

,, Ma'cgillivray

„

IC83

,, Grass

43

53

Night

.. 53"

659

,, Lesser Masked

4>

5"

North

.. 5>2

643

,, Lurid

... 3'

45

,, Orange-bellied Grass

.. 523

652

„ Marbled

... 3"

45

Pale-headed

... 490

633

,, Masked

... 39

50

,, Pennant

... 494

62^

,, Powerful

... 37

48

,, Red-backed

... 519

648

,. Rufous

... 38

49

„ Red-capped

... S0«

639

Sooty

... 42

52

,, Red-mantlec'

... 507

639

,, Spotted

... 33

45

Red-shouldered Grass

... 52s

654

Western Winking

... ,16

47

„ Rcd-ventcd

... 514

644

,, Winking

... 34

46

Rock

... 524

652

Oyster Catcher, Black

... .S99

778

,, Scarlet-chested Grass

... 526

654

Pied

... 598

776

,, Smutty

,, Warbling Grass ...

... 5"'
... 528

634
6sf.

P

Yellow

... 497

632

,, Yellow-bandetl

... 5"

642

Pacific Gull

... 6J7

862

Yellow-cheeked

... .506

638

Pacific Heron

... 708

955

,, Yellow-collared

... 5>o

641

Painted Finill

... 305

481

Yellow-mantled

... S04

«37

1082

i

,, Yellow-vented

... 5"3

643

ALPHABETICAL INDEX.

1095

Pardalnie, Black-headed
,, Clicsliiul-rumped

„ Forty-spotted

,, Orange-tipped

,. Red-browed

., Red-tipped

Spotted

Vellow-rumped ...
„ Yellow-tipped

Partridge Pigeon

„ „ Xaked-eyed

Pearly Flycatcher

Pectoral Rail

Pelican

Penguin, Crested

„ Fairy

„ Little

Pennant Parrakeet

Petrel, Allied

„ Banks' Dove

Black

,, Black-bellied Storm
Blue

,, Broad-billed Dove ...

,, Brown-headed

„ Brown

„ Cape

,, Cook

,, Diving

„ Dove

,, Fairy Dove

„ Fleshy-footed

„ Forster

„ Giant

,, Great-winged

Grey-backed Storm ...

„ Short-tailed

,, Silver-grey

,, Soft-plumaged

,, Sombre

,, Spectacled

„ Wedge-tailed

„ White-bellied Storm

,, While-faced Storm ...

,, White-fronted

,, White-headed

,, White-winged

,, Yellow-wehbed Storm

Pheasant Fantail

Pheasant Pigeon

Pied Butcher Bird

No.of No.ot
bird page

374

447

375

448

376

449

369

442

373

446

368

44"

3-1

444

3-2

445

370

443

550

689

loS-

55 J

691

109

'34

575

740

734

997

738

1007

740

1012

739

lOIO

494

639

667

878

687

915

676

899

664

874

68j

913

686

914

680

907

673

895

684

911

682

908

690

919

688

916

6S9

918

668

8Sa

672

894

683

909

677

902

662

87 >

669

882

674

897

679

906

671

893

675

897

666

S76

665

87.5

66.;

872

670

893

678

904

681

907

661

S6q

93

116

540

674

243

302

P

No. or No.of
bird page

Pied

Caterpillar Catcher ...

81

104

Pied

Cormorant

.. 723

975

Pied

Crow Shrike

.. 46

58

Pied Goose

■■ 742

1017

Pied

Egret

.. 709

957

Pied

Flycatcher

102

126

Pied

Honeyeater

... 3-8

380

Pied

Oyster Catcher

... .S98

776

Pied

Robin

... Il8

146

Pied

Tree Runner

... 279

340

Pigeon, Allied Fruit

... 536

667

,,

Black-banded Fruit...

•.. 533

663

,,

Bronze-winged

•■■ 545

680

,,

Brush Bronze-winged

... 546

(-«3

,,

Chestnut-quilled Rock

•■. 549

688

,,

Crested

■■. 555

695

„

Flock

- 547

684

„

Little Green

• •• 5(4

679

,,

Naked-eyed Partridge

■■• 551

6c t

,,

Nutmeg

... 537

668

"

Partridge

- 550

689
:o82

„

Pheasant

• ■. 540

674

„

Plumed

• ■ 552

691

,,

Purple-breasted Fruit

■ ■• 535

666

,,

Purple-crowned Fruit

••■ 534

664

,,

Red-crowned Fruit ...

- 53'

661

„

Red Plumed

... 553

692

,,

Rock

... 548

688

.,

Rose-crowned Fruit

... 532

663

,,

Top-knot

- 538

671

,,

White-bellied Plumed

..■ 554

693

White-headed Fruit

.-. 539

672

Wonga-wonga

... 556

696

Pilot

Bird

... 211

25S

Pink

Cockatoo

... 481

612

Pink-eared Duck

• •■ 757

1046

Pink-breasted Robin

... 113

138

Pitta

... 419

52s

,,

Blue-breasted

... 421

5=8

,.

Lesser

... 420

526

„

Rainbow

... 422

529

Plain

Wanderer

- 573

737

Plain

-coloured Tit

... 184

229

Plover, Black-breasted

... 603

784

Grey

604

786

,.

Lesser Golden

... 605

788

,,

Long-billed Stone ...

■■ 593

768

,,

Masked

.. 602

782

„

Spur-winged

... 601

78.

,,

Stone

... 592

766

Plum

-headed Finch

... 402

489

1096

NESTS ANb EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

p

No. of No. of
bird page

Plumed Egret

... 705

951

Plumed Fiogmouth

... 430

538

Plumed Pigeon ...

■•• .S5=

691

Red

■ ■■ 553

692

White-bellied

.■• 554

693

Plumed Whistling Duck

... 748

1027

Pomarine Skua

... 659

8O7

Powerful Owl

••■ 37

48

Pratincole

... 504

769

Oriental

... 5QS

771

Prion

... 688

916

„ Banks'

... 687

915

„ Broad-billed

... 686

914

„ Fairy

... 689

918

Purple-breasted Fruit Pigeon

■■■ 535

666

Purple-crowned Fruit Pigeon

■■ 534

664

Purple-crowned Lorikeet

... 468

596

Purple-crowned Wren

... 150

17S

Purple Tree Runner

... 279

34"

Purple Kingfisher

- 438

549

Qu

ii.

Black-backed ...
Black-breasted
Brown

Chestnut-backed
Chestnut-bellied
Clreater Brown

Little

Ulive

Painted
Red-chested
Stubble
White-bellied
Queensland Bower Bird

Rail, Chestnut-bellied

„ Pectoral

Slate-breasted Lewin
,, Red-necked

Rainbow Pitta

Raven

Red Goshawk

Red Throat

Red Wattle Bird

Red-backed Kingfisher

Red-backed Parrakeet

566

73"

567

730

56.-3

7--4

569

733

505

728

564

7-'7

571

734

1083

568

731

570

733

561

721

572

736

165

204

576

575
574
577
422

45
9
195
355
445
5>9

740
739
74'*
539
55
10
Q42
433
557
648

Red-backed Rosella ...
Red-backed Wren
Red-breasted Babbler
Red-browed Finch
Red-browed Tree Creeper
Red-browed Pardalote
Red-capped Dottrel ...
Red-capped Parrakeet
Red-capped Robin
Red-chested Quail
Red-collared Lorikeet
Red-crowned Fruit Pigeon
Red-crowned Lorikeet
Red-eared Finch
Red-faced Finch
Red-faced Lorilet
Red-headed Honeyeater
Red-kneed Dottrel
Red-legged Gannet ...
Red-mantled Parrakeet
Red-necked Avocet ...
Red-necked Rail
Red-plumed Pigeon ...
Red-rumped Tit
Red-shouldered Grass Parra
Red-tailed Cockatoo ...
Red-tailed Tropic Bird
Red-throated Honeyeater
Red-throated Robin ...
Red-throated Thickhead
Red-tipped Pardalote
Red- vented Parrakeet
Ked-winged Lory
Red-winged Wren

Reed Warbler

,, ,, Long-hilled

Reef Heron

Regent Bird

Restless Flycatcher ...

Richardson Skua

Rifle Bird

,, ,, Albert

,, ,, Victoria

Ringed Dottrel
Ringed Finch
Robin. Buff-sided

Dusky

,, Eastern Scrub
„ Flame-breasted

Fly

„ Grey-breasted Shrike

No. of No.of
bird page

502

635

'5'

170

223

274

4'>3

490

275

335

373

446

611

794

508

639

"5

■43

570

733

464

593

531

661

466

595

394

480

404

492

470

598

292

353

600

780

728

987

507

'39

617

804

577

742

553

692

188

234

-525

654

477

60S

732

994

316

378

116

■44

264

325

368

440

514

C44

491

626

146

1-5

153

181

154

■83

712

959

16S

208

100

124

660

867

54

66

I "73

56

76

55

69

6:0

793

398

486

122

»5"

119

'47

214

262

112

■36

357

3'7

=55

3'5

ALPHABETICAL INDEX.

1097

R

No. of
bird

Vo.Ot

p«Be

s

No. of No. 01
bird page

Robin

Hooded

• 1J7

'44

Sand Dottrel, Large

6u8

792

„

Large-beaded

■ 1=3

"50

„ ,, Mongolian

6.,9

793

„

Lesser Large-headed

. 124

'51

Sandpiper, American Grey-rumped

62s

812

„

Pale Scrub

■ =13

262

,, Bartram

629

815

,,

Pied

. li8

145

,, Common

6j6

812

,,

Pink- breasted

• "3

138

,, Great

635

821

,,

Red-capped

• "5

143

,, Grey-rumped

624

811

„

Red-throat?d

. li6

'44

Terek

627

813

,,

Rose-breasted

■ l>4

'39

Sanderliiig

630

816

„

Scarlet-breasted

no

'34

Satin Bower Bird

159

191

„

Scrub

. 212

261

Satin Flycatcher

97

121

„

Western Scarlet-breasted

III

.36

Scaly-breasted Lorikeet

465

594

,,

• • II

1076

Scaly-breasted Tit

191

237

,,

White-breasted

. I20

'48

Scarlet- breasted Robin

no

'34

,,

White-browed

121

'49

Scarlet-chested Grass Parrakeet ...

526

654

,,

White-faced

■ 125

'52

>• ■• >>

1081

,,

White-tailed Shrike

■ 2j6

3.6

Scrub Bird, Noisy

414

504

„

Yellow-breasted Shrike

253

3"

,, ,,

lr.80

„

Yellow-rumped Shrike

• 254

3'3

„ „ Rufous

4'5

505

Rock

Parrakeet

• 524

652

Scrub Fowl

560

7'5

Rock

Pigeon

. 54S

688

Scrub Robin

212

261

,,

Chestnut-quilled

549

688

,, „ Eastern

214

262

Rock

Pebbler

• 490

625

„ Pale

213

262

Rock

Warbler

. iSl

226

Scrub Tit

'94

241

Roller

■ 435

544

Scrub Wren, Brown

202

251

Roseate Tern

. 642

834

,, „ Buff-breasted

199

249

Rose-

:)reasted Cockatoo

.. 484

617

,, ,, Large-billed

.98

247

Rose-breasted Robin ...

• l"4

139

,, ,, Spotted

2CO

-■49

Rose-

crowned Fruit Pigeon

■ 532

663

,, Spotted-throated

201

250

Rosclla

■■ 5"3

f35

White-browed

'97

245

„

Adelaide

■ 4<)6

63'

„ White-throated

203

252

„

Red-backed

.. 502

635

,, ,, Yellow-throated

196

243

Rufous Bristle Bird

•• "74

219

Sea Eagle, White-bellied

'3

16

Rufous Owl

■■ 38

49

White-headed

14

'9

Rufous Fantail

. 89

112

Sharp-tailed Stint

632

S19

Rufous Scrub Bird

■■ 4IS

5"5

Shieldrake

750

1030

Rufous Song Lark

.. 225

276

White-headed

749

I021)

,,

Butcher Bird

.. 249

306

Sliining Flycatcher ...

104

129

Uufous Tree Creeper

.. 272

33'

Shining Starling

391

475

Rufous-breasled Honeyeater

•• 31;

379

Short-billed Tree Tit

126

153

Rufous-breasted Shrike Thrush

.. 71

93

Short-tailed Albatross

692

925

,,

„ Lesser

72

94

Short-tailed Petrel

669

882

Uufous- breasted Thickhead

. 263

324

Shoveller

756

1044

Rufous-crowned Emu Wren

171

217

,, Common

755

1043

Rufous-rumped Ground Wren

.. 216

264

Shrike Tit

2.50

308

Rufous-tailed Moor Hen

• ■ 583

75'

„ White-bellied

25'

3°9

Rufous-throated Cuckoo

■■ 459

586

shrike Robin, Grey-breasted

255

3>5

Russet Ground Thrush

• 157

ig.i

White-tailed

256

316

„ „ Yellow-breasted

• 253

3"

s

1, ,, Yellow-rumped

254

3'3

Shrike, Barred Cuckoo

78

99

Sacred Kingfisher

. 446

55S

Black Crow

5'

62

iogS

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

s

No.ot
bird

No. of
page

Shrike, Black-faced Cuckoo ...

.. 74

96

„ lilack-winged Crow...

.. 50

61

,, Grey Crow

.. 48

60

„ (Irnund Cuckoo

.- 73

95
1082

Hill Crow

■• 47

59

Leaden Crow

•■ 49

60

,, Little Cuckoo

■• 77

98

,, Pied Crow

.. 46

58

Small-billed Cuckoo

75

97

Thrush. Bower

.. 69

92

Buff-bellied

.. 63

9"

,, Brown

.. 67

91

,, Grey

.. Os

88

„ „ Lesser Rufous-breasted 72

94

Little

• 70

92
1082

„ Rufous-breasted

71

9j

„ „ Whistling ...

66

90

,, White-bellied Cuckoo

.. 76

98

Silver Gull

.. 656

S60

Silver-backed Butcher Bird ...

■■ 24s

304

Silver-grey Petrel

.. 674

897

Silvery-blue Wren

. 138

168

Silvery-crowned Friar Bird ...

•■ 363

434
1080

Singing Honeyeater

.. 326

390

Sittella, Black-capped

. 280

340

Orange-winged

Pied

•• 277
■ =79

337
340

Slender-billed

. =81

342

„ Striated

.. -'83

343

White-headed

. 278

339

„ White-winged

. 2S3

343

Skua

. 658

863

,, Pomarine

■ 659

867

,, Richardson

. 660

867

Slate-breasted Lewin Rail ...

■ S74

739

Slender-billed Sittella

. 281

34-'

,, Tree Runner ...

. 281

342

Small-billed Cuckoo Shrike ...

• 75

97

Smutty Parrakeet

■ 501

634

Snipe

. 636

822

Painted

. 637

826

Soft-plumaged Petrel

■ 679

906

Sombre Petrel

. 671

893

Song Lark, Black-hrcasled ...

. 224

275

,, ,, Rufous

. 325

276

Sooty Albatross

• 697

937

Sooty Crow Shrike

• 51

62

Sooty Owl

4J

S'

Sooty Tern

■ 647

844

No. of No. of
bird pa^e

Southern Fly Eater

Spakling Butcher Bird

Sparrow Hawk

Spectacled Flycatcher

Spectacled Petrel

Spine Bill

Spine Bill, White-browed ...
Spine-tailed Log Runner ...

Spine-tailed Swift

Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater ...
Spoonbill, Black-billed
,, Yellow-legged

Spotless Crake

Spotted Bower Bird

Spotted Cat Bird

Spotted Crake

Spotted Emu

Spotted Ground Birti

Spotted Harrier

Spotted Nightjar

Spotted Owl

Spotted Pardalote

Spotted Scrub Wren

Spotted-sided Finch

Spotted-throated Scrub Wren

Spur-winged Plover

Square-tailed Cuckoo

Square-tailed Kite

Starling, Shining

Stilt, Banded

,, White-headed
Stint, Curlew

„ Little

,, Sharp-tailed

Stone Plover

,, ,, Long-billed

Stork, Black-necked

Slorin Petrel, Black-bellied ...

,, ,, Grey-backed

,, „ White-faced

While-bellied

„ ,, Yellow-webbed

Straw-necked Ibis

Streak-naped Honeyeater ...

Striated Field Wren

Striated Grass Wren

Striated Sittella

Striated Tit

Striated Tree Runner

Striped-brown Hawk

Striped Honeyeater

•3"
248
8
105
675
^97
296
204
424
359
701
702
581
162

160
579
7O3
206
1
429

33
37"
200
392
20 1
Cm
452

17
39 >
O16
6>5
633
631
032
592
513
719
664
662
663
665
061
6qg
3-'9
226
17O
-■S3
iSg

283
26

■57
306

9

'3°

897

3.>8

357

252

531

427

946

94S

748

19S

1082

195

745

1066

254

■ •I

536

45

444

249

47S

250

781

572

23

475

803

801

S20

818

819

766

76S

969

874

871

S72

S75

869

942

394

278

223

.143

234

343

36

369

ALPHABETICAL INDEX.

1099

C

No. of No. of

T

No. of No. of

*■'

bUd

page

bird

page

Strong-billed Houeycater ...

.. 30=

3O4

Thic

klieaa. Black-tailed

258

3 "8

Slubble Quail

... 561

7-''

,, lirnwn

267

32S

Sun Bird

... 284

344

,. ,,

1082

Swallow

... 378

4SO

Cape Vork

266

327

„ Black-faced Wood ...

... 388

471

,. Grey-iaiied

s6i

322

Black and While ...

... 379

454

,, Large-billfd

269

328

„ Eastern

■■• 377

45"

,, Northern

. 262

323

,, Grey-breasted Wood

... 3S6

469

1. >,

1082

Little Wood

... 390

474

Ulive

. 3O5

326

Masked Wood ...

... 38s

466

,, Red-throated

. 264

325

.,

ic8j

„ Rufous-breasted

263

324

White-bellied Wood

■■■ 387

470

Western

260

321

,, White-browed Wood

... 384

4O3

White-bellied ...

. 26S

aif

,, White-rumped Wood

•■ 3S3

4f>I

„ White-throated

■ 259

3'9

.. Wood

... 3.S9

47'

Thrush, Bower Shrike

. (39

92

Swamp Hawk

2

2

,.

Broadbent Ground

■58

X9I

Swan, Black

... 741

IOI4

,1

Brown Shrike

■ 67

91

Swift Lorikeet

■ ■■ 537

65s

„

Butf-bellied Shrike

68

91

Swift, Spine-tailed

... 424

J3>

11

Grey Shrike ..

. 65

88

,, White-rumped

- 423

53"

,.

Ground

■ >55

184

Swiftlet, Edible-nest

... 4-'6

533

,

Ground Large-billed

■ 1513

188

,, Grey-rumped

... 425

532

.

Lesser Rufous-breasted Shrike 72

94

■

Little Shrike

• 70

92
1082

1

Rufous-breasted Shrike .

■ 7'

(.3

T

•

Russet Ground
Whistling Shrike ...

■ 157
66

I9--
9

Tasmanian Tit

... I86

232

Tippet Grebe

• 737

lfjo4

Tawny Frogmoulh

■ ■• 431

530

Tit,

Broad-tailed

. 187

233

Tawny Grass Bird

... 180

2;5

„

Brown

. 185

230

Teal ...

... 752

1037

,,

Buff-rumped

• 193

239

,, Blue-winged

754

104.

„

Chestnut-rumped

. 190

23'S

„ Garganey

■•• 754

1042

,,

Little

. 183

328

,, Green Goose

- 743

1019

„

Plain-coloured

. 184

229

„ Grey

■■■ 753

1039

„

Red-rumped

. 188

234

II White-quilled Goose ...

... 744

1020

,,

Scaly-breasted

. 191

237

Terek Sandpiper

... fi_.7

8-3

,,

Scrub

• .194

241

Tern, Black-naped

... 650

S49

„

Short-billed Tree

. 126

■53

Brown-winged

... 646

842

Shrike

■ 250

30"

, Caspian

... 641

832

,,

White-bellied

■ 251

309

, Crested

... 644

837

Striated

180

23.*

1 Gull-billed

... 640

830

„

lasraanian

. 1S6

232

1 Lesser Crested

..• 643

835

Yellow-ruraped

192

23'

. Marsh

... 639

829

,,

Yellow-tinted Tree

• 127

«54

, Panayan

... 646

842

,,

i»

1076

1 Roseate

... 642

834

Too

h-billed Bower Bird

167

207

, Sooty

... 647

844

Top-knot Pigeon

....'iss

671

, White

- 653

85-

Tree

Creeper, Black

270

329

. White-fronted

- 645

840

,j

Black-backed

271

330

, White-winged

... 638

828

,, Brown

274

334

Ternlet, White-faced

... 648

847

,,

Red-browed

275

335

White-shafted

... 649

84K

..

Rufous

272

331

1 100

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

Tree Creeper, White- biowed
„ ,, White-lhroated

Tree Martin

Tree Runner, Black-capped
,, ,, Orange-winged

Pied

„ ,, Slender-billed

,, Striated

,, White-headed

,, ,, White-winged

Tree Tit, Short-billed

,, ,, Yellow-tinted
Tricoloured Bush Chat
Trt.plc Bird, Red-tailed

„ White-tailed
Turkey, Barnard Brush

Brush

Wild

Turnstone -■

Turquoise Wren

Varied Honeyeater
Varied Lorikeet
Variegated Wren

(.lili.ert

Victoria Lyre Bird
Victoria Rifle Bird

w

No. of No. of
bird page

276

336

273

332

380

456

280

34"

277

237

279

34"

281

342

283

343

278

339

282

343

126

■53

127

154

231

28,

732

994

733

995

559

7'4

5.58

708

■ 591

762

. 597

774

■ M2

17,.

327
406

'47

■49

417

55

Wanilerer, Plain 573

Wandering Albatross 691

WarUer, Grass 182

,, Long-l)ilIed Reed 154

,, Reed 153

„ Rock 181

Warbling Grass Parrakeet 528

Warty-faced Honeyeater 319

W.'illle Bird, Brush 357

„ „ Red 355

„ „ Little 358

„ „ Yellow 356

Wattle-checked Honeyeater ... 336

Wedge Bill 219

Wedge-tailed Petrel 660

Wedge-tailed Eagle 10

Western Fantail 87

Western Scarlet-breasted Robin ... in

Western Thickhead 260

Western White-naped Honeyeater 200

Western Winking (Jwl 36

392
595
175
■77
S'o
69

737
921
227
■8j
181
226
656
38^
425
423
4=6
425
401
269
87O

II
no
136
1076
321
361

47

w

Whimbrel

,, Little

Whip Bird, Black-throated

Whistling Duck

,, ,, Plumed

Whistling Eagle

Whistling Shrike Thrush ...

White Cockatoo

White Eye

,, ,, Green-backed ...

,, ,, Gulliver

„ Pale Bellied ...

„ Yellow

,, ,, Yellow-vented

White Face

,^ ,, Black-banded ...

„ „ Chestunt-breasted

White Gnsliawk

,, ,, Lesser

White Ibis

White Tern

White-backed Magpie

White-backed Wren

White-bearded Honeyeater
White-bellied Cuckoo Shrike
White-bellied Flycatcher ...
White-bellied Plumed Pigeon

White-bellied Quail

White-bellied Sea Eagle
White-bellied Shrike Tit ...
White-bellied Storm Petrel ...
White-bellied Thickhead ...
Whitebellied Wood Swallow
White-breasted Cormorant ...
White-breasted Finch

White-breasted Honeyeater
White-breasted Robin
White-browed Babl>ler

White-browed Crake

White-browed Robin

White-browed Scrub Wren ...
White-browed Spine Bill ...
White-browed Tree Creeper

White-browed Wood Swallow
White-capped Albatross

White-capped Noddy

White-cheeked Honeyeater ...
White-eared Flycatcher
White-cared Grass Finch

No. of No. of
bird page

619

806

620

806

218

268

747

025

748

027

■5

zo

66

90

480

On

^85

347

287

350

290

352

288

35'

289

35'

. 286

349

• 234

287

. 23O

289

• 235

289

4

4

5

6

108 2

. 698

940

• 65s

857

• =38

252

■ 145

'74

. .W6

412

. 76

98

. 106

'3'

.. 554

693

■• 57-;

736

• ■ "3

16

.. 2.SI

300

.. 665

875

.. 268

3=8

.. 387

470

.. 722

973

.. 4'i^

489

kSo

■ ■ 3">

373

.. 120

■ 48

.. 221

272

.. 582

740

lai

■49

.. 197

245

.. 296

357

.. 270

336

108J

.. 3S4

463

.. 694

939

.. 6S4

856

.. 348

414

... I. .7

'3-'

408

49O

ALPHABETICAL INDEX.

IIOI

w

No of No. of

w

No. of

Vo.ol

liird

page

bird

jagc

Whitc-carcd Hoiicycatcf ...

- 33=

396

Wild

Turkey

• 59"

762

White-eyed Buzzard Eagle ...

13

16

Winking Owl

• 34

46

While-eyed Duck

... 759

1050

Wong

vwonga Pigeon

■ 556

696

White-faced Robin

... 125

■5=

Wood

Duck

.. 746

1023

White-faced Storm Petrel ...

... 663

872

Wood

Fantail

90

114

White-faced Ternlet

... 648

847

Wood

Swallow

.. 389

471

White-fronted Bush Chat ...

... ^30

282

Clack-faced

.. 388

471

White-fronted Fantail

- 93

116

„ Grey-breasted

.. 386

469

White-fronted Heron

... 707

554

„ Little

.. 390

474

White-fronted Houeyealer ...

.. 309

372

.,

Masked

■■ 38s

466

Wliitc-fronted Petrel

... 670

S93

It "

1082

White-fronted Tern

... 645

840

While-bellied

•■ 387

470

White-gaped Honeyeater ...

... 3'14

410

Whitc-browed

.. 384

463

White-headed Fruit Pigeon

■ ■■ 539

672

„

WMiite-rumped

• • 3«3

461

White-headed Osprcy

... J9

40

Wren,

Banilcd ...

- 143

172

White-headed Petrel

... 67S

9"4

Black-backed

.. I4t

169

White-headed Sea Eagle ...

14

19

Blue

-• 137

163

White-headed Shieldrakc ...

- 749

I02g

Brown Scrub

.. 202

251

White-headed Sittella

... =78

339

„

Buff-breasted Scrub

.. IS9

249

White-headed Stilt

... 615

So I

.,

Chestnut-rumped Ground

. . 315

263

White-headed Tree Runner

... =78

339

Dark-blue

.. 140

169

Whitc-naped Honeyeater ...

... ^98

359

1077

White-necked Heron

... 708

955

Desert

.. 228

280

While-plumed Honeyeater ...

■ •• 338

403

Emu ...

170

214

While-quilled Goose Teal ...

••. 744

1020

Field

279

White-quilled Honeyeater ...

... 361

432

Gilbert Variegated ...

.. 149

■ 77

"

1079

.,

Goyder Grass

.. 178

223

While-rumped Swift

.■■ 4-3

53"

Grass

.• "75

221

White-rumped Wood Swallow

-383

461

Large-billed Scrub ...

.. 198

247

White-shafted Fantail

86

108

„

Large-tailed Grass ...

.. «77

223

White-shafted tirnlet

... 649

84S

Little Field

.. 229

281

White-shouldered Caterpillar Catcher So

103

Long-tailed Blue

.. 139

169

While-tailed Cockatoo

.•• 473

601

Lovely

.. 148

176

While-tailed Fanlail

92

"5

Orange-backed

.. 152

1 80

White-tailed Kingfisher

... 448

5«i

„

Purple-crowned

.. 150

178

White-tailed Shrike Robin ...

... 256

316

„

Red backed

.. 151

■ 79

White-tailed Tropic Bird ...

■•• 733

995

,,

Red-winged

.. 146

■ 75

White-throated Flyeater

... IJS

■55

„

Rufous-crowned Emu

.. 171

217

White-throated Honeyeater

... 300

362

„

Rufous-ruraped Ground

.. 216

264

White-throated Nightjar

... 4::8

535

j^

Silvery-blue

.. 138

168

White-throated Scrub Wren

... 203

252

Spotted Scrub

.. 200

249

While-throated Thickhead ...

••■ 259

319

,,

Spotted-throated Scrub

.. 201

250

White-throated Tree Creeper

•■■ 273

332

,,

Striated Grass

.. 176

222

White-winged Butcher Bird

... 244

303

,,

Striated Field

.. 226

278

White-winged Chough

••• 53

65

Turquoise

.. 142

170

White-winged Petrel

... f,8i

907

,,

Variegated

.. 147

176

White-winged Sittella

... 2S2

343

,,

White-backed

■ ■ 145

■74

White-winged Tern

... 638

828

„

White-browed Sci'ub

.. 197

245

White-winged Tree Runner

... 282

343

,,

White-throated Scrub

.. 203

2S2

White-winged Wren

... 144

■73

,,

White-winged

144

■73

Widgeon

■.. 757

1046

,,

Yellow-throated Scrub

... 196

343

II02

NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS.

No. of No.of
l)ird page

Yellow Bittern, Little

Yellow Honeyeater

Yellow Miner

Yellow Oriole

Yellow Parrakeet
Yellow-banded Parrakeet
Yellow-bellied Fig Bird
Yellow-billed Kingfisher
Yellow-breasted Bush Ch.it
Yellow-breasted Flycatcher ...
Yellow-breasted Shrike Robin
Y'^ellow-cheeked Parrakeet ...
Y'ellow-collared Parrakeet ...
Y'ellow-eared Honeyeater ...
Yellow- faced Honeyeater
Yellow-fronted Honeyeater ...
Y'^ellow-legged Spoonbill
Y'ellow-raantled Parrakeet ...
Y'ellow-necked Mangrove Bittern
Yellow-nosed Albatross
Yellow-plumed Honeyeater ...
Yellow-rumped Finch

715
J43
354

59
497
511

62
440
233

99
■^53
5cO
510
323
3^8
341
702
504
717
6y6
340
400

964
408
42J

80
632
642

84
550
286
123
311
63S
641
386
39-!
407
C48
637
066
935
406
488
1082

Yellow-rumped Pardalote . . .
Yellow-rumped Shrike Robin

Yellow-rumped Tit

Yellow-spotted Bower Bird ...

Yellow-
Yellow-
Yellow-
Yellow-
Yellow-
Yellow-
Yellow-
Yellow-

spotted Hont-yeater ...
streaked Honeyeater
throated Friar Bird ...
throated Honeyeater
throated Miner
throated Scrub Wren
tinted Honeyeater ...
tinted Tree Tit

Yellnw-tipped Pardalote
Yellow-tufted Honeyeater ...
Yellow-vented Parrakeet
Yellow-vented White Eye ...
Yellow-webbed Storm Petrel
Yellow Wattle Bird
Yellow White Eye

No.of No. of
bird page

31^

445

-'54

3'3

192

=J8

163

202

1078

3-0

383

3=S

389

365

435

33"

394

3S3

422

196

-•43

342

40S

l2^

'54

1076

17"

443

334

398

5'3

643

286

349

60 1

869

356

425

=89

35'

J

-:■■*■- \' , *.

?^

•• • '•■■■■ ■■ -ji

^■.;.-'.- ,-,\;;,!^fe