a6 L-e Sovef, Queensland Notes. [isf'juiy 



that Crow, but the latter bird zigzagged rapidly to the ground 

 and escaped, just the same way as when a Sparrow-Hawk or 

 Falcon attacks Nankeen Night-Herons {Nycticorax caledonicits) 

 they at once fly on to the ground. We often notice it at the 

 Melbourne Zoo. 



When passing a small swamp much overgrown with bulrushes 

 we saw an Allied Swamp-Hawk {Circus goiddi) attempt to strike 

 a Coot, which was on the water ; but the latter bird was too quick 

 for him, and, calling out, quickly dived, throwing up water at the 

 Harrier at the same time with its feet. Several Whistling-Ducks 

 {Dendrocygna arcuata) were on the same water, and uttered their 

 musical note ; they dived also, and betook themselves to the 

 rushes for safety. These birds frequently nest on the ground, 

 and usually near water. Black Ducks {Anas siiperciliosa) only 

 occasionally nest in hollows in trees ; they nest usually in the long 

 grass of the plains, and often well away from water. 



Native Companions only seemed to be in pairs on the plain 

 country. They often uttered their loud, shrill call, and were 

 answered by others in the distance. They are usually much more 

 noisy in the evenings. Most of the white ants' or termites' mounds 

 we passed had been burrowed into by the porcupine ant-eaters, 

 or echidna, in their search for food. In the thicker patches of 

 grass, where the ground was dry, we usually saw tracks made by 

 the Grass-Owls, bush rats, and kangaroo rats, but pigs often 

 camped in these places too. On examining the small swamps, 

 or swampy ground on the plains, where the grass was usually green, 

 and where the flocks of Egrets settled, we soon found out why the 

 birds came here, as the vegetation was more or less alive with 

 thousands of small frogs of two kinds. Mr. Barnard has often 

 noticed that many frogs have cannibalistic tendencies, and eat 

 one another whenever they get a chance and are hungry. W'e also 

 noticed numbers of small fresh-water snails, which are eaten by 

 the Egrets and Ibis. 



The next day was spent wading, with a camera, in the swamp 

 among the Cormorants and Spoonbills. It is difficult to describe 

 the interest of being in a colony of nesting birds, hearing the 

 raucous call of the parent birds, the shrill cries of the young of 

 various sizes, and the gurgling noise they often make when being 

 fed, as well as the rustle of the birds' wings. Both kinds of birds 

 nested in the same trees, the Spoonbills' nests being larger and 

 usually placed higher up. We noticed that, although the 

 Cormorants were all of the Pied variety, many of the young were 

 pure black, while others had light-coloured breasts. They were 

 in all stages of growth — some just hatching, and others ready 

 to fly. We only found one nest of the Yellow-billed Spoonbill 

 {Platibis flavipes) — it contained three eggs ; but there were hundreds 

 of nests of the Black-billed. When we waded close to a Melaleuca 

 tree on which nests were, the larger young Cormorants got very 

 restless, and frequently climbed out of the nests, and at the same 

 time vomited up the contents of their stomachs, so we had to 



