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 



