48 h'E SouEF, Queensland Noies. fisf "tuI - 



of mice, a few dead snakes and numbers of live ones, mostly black 

 snakes (Pseudechis porphyriaciis), also kangaroo rats and similar 

 animals. Crows and Butcher-Birds were busy regaling them- 

 selves on the dead remains. We evidently have no conception of 

 the amount of animal, bird, and insect life destroyed by these 

 disastrous cyclones. 



Mr. Ernest Barnard visited Toorilla in March, 1913, and saw a 

 rookery of both Straw-necked and White Ibis together on the far 

 side of the swamp. There were about 30 to 40 nests, which were 

 built among scattered reeds growing in about four inches of water. 

 The nests were built of rushes plastered with excreta, and in 

 some cases six or seven would be joined together. Single nests 

 were uncommon ; twos and threes joined together were the rule. 

 He saw no crocodile tracks. It is unusual for Ibis to nest so close 

 to the ground ; he states that a very slight rise of water would 

 swamp the nests. When returning to the homestead we flushed 

 about fifteen Stone-Plovers {(Edicnemus grallarius) that were 

 congregated under the lee of a rise. I do not remember seeing 

 so many together before. 



During the evening we heard a pair of Winking Owls {Ninox 

 connivens) in the trees of the rookery. The note of the female 

 was in a higher key than that of the male ; the note sounded like 

 " Wouf, wouf." 



Next morning we drove to the other side of the swampy plain 

 to see the nest of a Jabiru {Xenorhynchus asiaticns). A huge old 

 nest had been blown down, but a new nest had been started at 

 the top of a large bean-tree. The nest was difficult to detect 

 from the ground, on account of the foliage. Mr. Berney had 

 noticed another pair nesting, but we could not locate them. 

 About 50 yards away from the Jabiru's nest a pair of White- 

 bellied Sea-Eagles had a very large nest on a eucalyptus tree ; 

 the female bird was watching us from a neighbouring tree as we 

 took the photo. Close by this place a creek ran out over the 

 plain, consequently the Egrets congregated here to catch what 

 they could in the shallow running water. Mr. Berney had noticed 

 an Osprey {Pandion lencocephaliis) nesting nearer the coast than 

 where we were when he visited Toorilla last year. 



We now drove back to the homestead and caught the coach — 

 a buck-board buggy with one seat — back to Kunwarara, and went 

 on next morning (Monday) to Rockhampton. The train passed 

 through a good many patches of scrub, and in all of them the 

 introduced prickly-pear cactus {Opitntia) was growing thickly — 

 so much so that in many places it would be difficult to get through. 

 Scrub-Turkeys were also plentiful, and I was informed that last 

 year about 1,000 of these birds were shot and sent to Rock- 

 hampton for sale. 



We visited the Botanical Gardens during the afternoon, and 

 noticed a fine Cassowary (Casuarius australis), Scrub-Turkey 

 {Catheturus lathami), and other birds in their enclosures, and 

 plenty of water-fowl in a small lake close by, where they are pro- 



