98 Wilson, Oynithological Trip to Nhill District, f voT'^^xxxv. 



sterns of a clump of Broom-bush, and the others were attached 

 to the partially-foHaged, standing stems of malice gums that 

 had Ix'en cut off ])v tlie eucalyptus oil distillers. In eacli case 

 I found two adult males in close proximity to the nest, 

 apparenth' living in harmon\-, as no signs of discord were 

 noticed on anv occasion. The W'iniam l)irds dvc larger than 

 specimens of the same species that I collected at Kow Plains, 

 and have very fine long tails. Maluriis cyaueiis is also present 

 in the district, but is comparatively rare, and only inhabits 

 the outskirts of the scrub. It also was l)reeding. A specimen 

 I secured of this bird was compared witli a series of skins of 

 M. cyunciis kindly [ilaced at my disposal l)y ]\Ir. J. A. Kershaw, 

 of the National Museum, Melbourne. It is small in comparison 

 with skins obtained in Victoria, and approached nearest to a 

 specimen labelled " Junction of Murray and Darling." The 

 wings are paler than those of other Victorian birds, and the 

 eggs are very small indcx'd, one set I obtained being spotted 

 wdth black. It seems to be a bleached form, and perhaps an 

 examination of a series of skins mav lead to its olitaining 

 sub-specific rank. 



On two occasions I came across Black-capped Tree-runners, 

 Ncosilia pileata, six birds forming the fiock in both mstances. 

 .A. long search rewaled a nest situated about 15 feet up in a 

 dead stringybark sapling. It contained newly-hatched young, 

 and all six birds assembled whilst I was investigating it. 



The genus Acanthiza was represented In- five species — A. 

 chyysorrhoci, A. iineata, A. regiiloidcs, A. pyrrhopy<^Ja, and a 

 new species that I ha^'e named A. wiuiamidtt. Whilst speaking 

 of Acanthizas I should like to acknowledge my indebtedness 

 to Mr. Edwin Ashby, M.B.O.U., for placing at my disposal a 

 very fine series of skins of Acanthizas to assist me in working 

 out the' new species. Three nests of A. pyryJiopygia were found, 

 two containing fresh eggs and one witli an incubate^d set. One 

 of the nests had only just been started on 7th October. The 

 nest was completed on the loth, the first egg laid on the nth, 

 second on the 13th, and the third on the 15th. '\Aw Red- 

 luiujK'd Tit, like the Brown Tit, is a splendid mimic, and I 

 heard it imitating the Narrow-billed Bronze-Cuckoo, the Short- 

 billid Tree-Tit, and the Silver-eye to perfection. One nest 

 was placed about four feet up in a Hakea, another about the 

 same height in a Casuarina, and a third nest found was 

 situated about a foot from the grounfl in a tin\- Casuarina 

 seedling. 



Nesting-mounds of the Mallee-Fowl, Leipoa ocelhita, were 

 frequently nu-t with in the dense scrub, but in only (jne instance 

 had they starter! nesting operations, although an aliundanci' 

 of rain had fallen previously. Only one egg was found in the 



