sti(;matops. 



partly hide the eggs. On the Herbert River I found a nest on the yth March, 1903, with three 

 newly hatched young, but nests with eggs I have most frequently found in September and 

 October." 



A nest received from Mr. Boyd is an elongated pear-shaped structure with a wide mouthed 

 entrance in the side, and is formed throughout of soft yellowish-white paper-like bark of a species 

 of Melaleuca, and is suspended from the leafy twigs of one of these trees. It measures externally 

 eight inches in length by four inches in diameter at its widest part, and across the entrance one 

 inch and three-quarters. Internally it measures five inches in height, by two inches and a 

 quarter in breadth. 



As pointed out by me in i88g, in the first edition of this work, '^ it will be observed that both 

 Glycyphila fasciata and G. modesta, whose habitat is confined to Northern Australia, built dome- 

 shaped nests, while G. fulvifrons and G. alhifyons, which are found in Southern Australia, build 

 open cup-shaped structures. 



The eggs of the present species are usually two, rarely three in number for a sitting, varying 

 from elongate and compressed ovals to oval in form, the shell being close-grained, smooth, and 

 usually lustreless. Out of many sets now before me, two only have a slight gloss. They are 

 pure white with very minute but distinct purplish-black dots sparingly scattered over the surface 

 of the shell, predominating as usual on the larger end. Others have a cap only on the larger end 

 formed of almost invisible but not confluent markings or pepperings of purplish-black, while 

 some are entirely devoid of markings. To the naked eye these minute dots appear almost black, 

 but when examined through a lens, the purplish shade is visible in one or more penumbral dots. 

 A set of three (elongated ovals) measures: — Length (A) 0-83 x 0-52 inches; (6)0-84 ^ 0'92 

 inches; (0)0-83 >^ O'ji inches. A set of two (ovals) measures : — Length (A) 0-73 x o'5 inches; 

 (B) 0-69 X o"33 inches. 



The eggs of this Honey-eater are probably the commonest of any species in the coastal 

 districts of the north-eastern portion of the continent. I have received many sets from Mr. 

 J. A. Boyd while resident at the Herbert Ri\er, also from Mr. B. Hislop from the Bloomfield 

 River, and a few sets from Cooktown. 



The feathers on the back of immature birds have an ochreous-rufous wash, which is more 

 pronounced on the rump and upper tail-coverts, the upper wing-coverts and quills have ochreous- 

 rufous margins which are more distinct on their outer webs, and the fore neck and sides of the 

 breast are longitudinally streaked with brown, ^^'ing measurement 2-6 inches, almost equals 

 that of the fullv adult male. 



Stigmatops ocularis. 



BROWN HONEY-EATER 



Glyciphila ! ocularis, Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc, 1837, p. 1")4. 



fflyciphi/a ocularis, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol.. Vol. IV., pi. 31 (1S4S). 



(rlycyphila ocularis, Gadow, Cat. Bds. Brit. Miis., Vol. IX., p. 213 (ISS-f). 



Stiymatops ocularis, Gould, Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. .500 (18G.T); Sharps, Rep. Voy. H.M.S. 

 "Alert,'' p. IS (18S4); Salvaii., Ann, .Mus. Civ. Gen. Vol. 29., p. 502 (1890); North, 

 Trans. Roy. «oc., S.A., Vol. XXII., p, UG (1898); Hartcrt, Nov. Zool., Vol. XII., p. 234 

 (1905). 



Glyciphila f siibocnlaris, Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc, 1837, p. 154. 



• App., p. 389 (18S9). 



