^"^1906^ '] Mattixglev, Thc Coachivhip-Bird. 195 



lice, which they no doubt get from their parents, which are 

 ground-frequenting birds, and as such liable to be vermin- 

 infested. I recently noticed close by its nest the remains of an 

 adult bird which had evidently been devoured by a fox, and 

 since they build their nests but 2 feet 6 inches to 7 feet from the 

 ground, mostly in " wire-grass," entangled " hickory " scrub, 

 either in its green or dry state, and also in tea-tree and other 

 shrubs, a fox would have no difficulty in catching them. The 

 nest is composed of wire-like grass and rootlets of a chocolate- 

 brown colour generally, strongly though loosely put together in 

 a circular st)'le of architecture, the colour harmonizing with that 

 of the young nestlings. The eggs (two) of the Coachwhip are 

 very beautiful, being of a light bluish or greenish white, 

 moderately blotched and marked with sepia and light grey. 

 Some clutches have, in addition to the blotchings, hieroglyphic- 

 like markings. The diameter of the nest is usually 6 inches, 

 but I have found nests only 4 inches across, containing about 

 half the quantity of material usually comprising their nest, 

 which, when in this condition, may easily be mistaken for a 

 Thickhead's (A^t7/;'r(/'/'r^■/r^) nest. (See illustration.) The Coach- 

 whip-Bird, of which there are two or three species in Australia, 

 is distributed over both the eastern and western regions. 

 They are local in their habits, rarely venturing more than a few 

 hundred yards from their headquarters. A pair seems to have 

 a definite area, from which they seem to expel intruders of the 

 same species as themselves. Should a person in eastern forests 

 apparently hear two pairs calling in close pro.ximity to one 

 another he will discover on investigation that a Lyre-Bird 

 {Meuiira) is probably mimicking the calls of the Coachwhip. 

 This they do to perfection — in fact, the Lyre-Bird is the leading 

 mimic among the ornis of the world. 



Oological Notes and Further Description of New 



Fruit'Pigeon. 



By a. J. Campbell, Col. Mem. B.O.U. 

 P.SEUDOGERYGONE I5RUNNEIPECTUS (Brown-breasted Fly-cater). 

 This little-known bird is found farther down the eastern coast 

 than was suspected, its habitat probably extending to the 

 Fitr.roy. Mr. E. M. Cornwall lately found it breeding at 

 Mackay, where it appears a common species in the vicinity of 

 mangrove swamps, and from which locality he has enriched my 

 collection with both nest and eggs. He also sent a bird for 

 identification. The first nest was discovered on thc 8th October, 

 1905, and was suspended about 10 feet from the ground in a 

 mangrove. A second nest was taken on the 26th November 

 following, also placed in a mangrove about 5 feet from the 

 ground. 



