ORNITHOLOGICAL NOTES — NORTH. 107 



For the sake of comparison the following measurements are given 



Total length of skin. Wing. Tail. Bill. Tarsus. Localities. 



P. leilavalensis, ad. sk 6 inches 2 8 2*7 0'42 07o Fullerton Eiver, 



N. Queensland. 

 P. penicillata S a.d. sk. 67 „ 3-45 3-3 Oo 082 Near Adelaide, 



S. Australia. 

 c?ad. sk. 6-6 „ 33 3-2 047 0-8 Bourke, Western 



N. S. Wales. 

 (?ad. sk. 6-5 „ 3-3 3-1 0-47 08 Dawson River, 



Queensland. 

 P. flavescens, ^ad. sk. 5*7 ,, 2'95 2*7 0'5 0'7 Georgetown, 



Gulf District. 

 5ad.sk. 5-4 „ 2-92 27 0-48 07 Derby, N. West 



Australia. 



IX.— DESCRIPTION of the NEST and EGGS of MIC RjEC A 

 PALLIDA, De vis. 



Dr.W.Macgillivray has kindly forwarded the following description 

 of the nest of this species, together with the eggs and skin of the 

 bird for identification. 



"Two nests of this species of MicrcBca were taken by my brother 

 Mr. A. S. Macgillivray on Leilavale Station, Fullerton River, 

 North Queensland, between the 20th and 25th December, 1897. 

 They were built rather low down on horizontal branches in a patch 

 of Giddea scrub and each contained a pair of eggs. A nest my 

 brother sent was slightly smaller but more substantially built 

 than that of M. fascinans, and of much the same material, the 

 outside being ornamented with bits of bark and lichen attached 

 by means of cobweb." 



The eggs are oval in form, one specimen having a pale bluish- 

 grey ground colour, which is freckled and spotted with faint purple 

 and purplish-brown, predominating and becoming darker as usual 

 on the thicker end of the shell ; the other is of a warm stone 

 white ground colour, and in many places the markings which are 

 of a light reddish-purple are confluent and intermingled with faint 

 underlying spots of pale greyish-lilac. Length (A) 0'69 x 0-55 

 inch ; (B) 0-67 x 0-5G inch. 



The range of this species probably extends right across the 

 northern portion of the Australian Continent, for there are 

 specimens in the Museum, obtained by Mr. E. J. Cairn at Derby, 

 North-west Australia in 1886. 



