236 RECORDS OF THE AUSTRALIAN MtTSEUM. 



The dogs brought to Sydney en route for the German Antarctic 

 Expedition, were of great interest to us ; and through the courtesy 

 of the Chief Inspector of Stock (Mr. Alex. Bruce), Mr. Waite 

 and myself were afforded an opportunity of examining them. A 

 dog dying during the stay of the pack in Sydney, the Chief 

 Inspector was good enough to forward the carcass to the Museum, 

 with the approval of the Expedition's Sydney agents, Messrs. 

 Lohniann and Co. 



The specimens received in this Section during 1901, were: — by 

 donation, forty-one; exchange, eight; purchase, two; and collection 

 two. 



AVES. 



(Mr. A. J. North, Assistant-in-Charge). 



Mr. North reports as follows: — " Relieved of the duties apper- 

 taining to the registration of Ethnological, Numisinatical, and 

 Historical specimens, that I have performed for the past nine years, 

 I was enabled to devote ray time entirely to this Section. The 

 acquisitions totalling one-third more than during the previous year, 

 my attention was divided between the ordinary routine or adminis- 

 trative work— such as registration, determination, and labelling of 

 specimens — and the preparation of MS. for the Special Catalogue, 

 ' Nests and Eggs of Birds found breeding in Australia and Tasmania.' 

 In the preparation of the latter work, I must here acknowledge the 

 valuable assistance received by the loan of numerous specimens for 

 comparison and examination from the Directors of the South Aus- 

 tralian Museum, Adelaide, and the Queensland Museum, Brisbane. 

 To a less degree, similar help was also received from Dr. A. M. 

 Morgan, Dr W. Macgillivray, Mr. E. Ashby, Mr. G. A. Keart- 

 land, and Mr. G. Savidge. After vexatious delays, through diffi- 

 culty in obtaining suitable paper by the printer, a small part of the 

 Catalogue was issued about the middle of June. The requisite 

 paper for further printing was not received from London until 

 towards the close of the year. Field work was paid more attention 

 to than has been done for a long while past, with the result that 

 numerous additions were made to the collection. Photographs of 

 nests in situ were taken, and much useful information obtained 

 of the life-histories of some of the rarer species. An ever increas- 

 ing correspondence on ornithological subjects, exhibits the growing 

 interest taken in our Australian avifauna. Small collections of 

 birds and eggs were determined, and eighty-four species of birds' 

 eggs were named for the Director of the Athens Museum. Among 

 specially interested visitors and co-workers might be mentioned 

 the late Mr. Lionel W. VViglesworth, a former colleague of Dr. 

 A. B. Meyer, of the Dresden Museum, and joint author with him 

 of the 'Birds of Celebes.' Mr. Wiglesworth spent about a fort- 

 night in Sydney, and was particularly interested in the collection 

 of Polynesian bird-skins." 



