226 THE USEFUL BIRDS 



popularly called pine-ridges, from the fact that the Murray 

 pine generally grows on them. 



"The male and female birds difTer very little in markings, 

 and their mottled black and grey colour harmonizes wonder- 

 fully with their surroundings. As they are shy and solitary, 

 they are rarely seen, but specimens are sometimes obtained by 

 patient watching near their nesting ground. They occasion- 

 ally utter a low, soft note, and their gait, when undisturbed, 

 is a slow walk, although they can run fast if necessary. Their 

 food consists of insects, berries, and the buds of a small 

 shrub. They go to roost in trees when it is almost dark. 



" The nesting-mound of these birds is generally situated 

 close to some pine trees, or with thick scrub near or round it, 

 and rarely without cover being near. When the scrub has 

 been cut down round their old nesting-place they leave it and 

 form another, but they prefer to make up their old mounds if 

 possible, and the same places are often used year after year. 

 When the birds have selected a site, they scrape out a shght 

 hollow in the ground, from 6 to 8 inches deep in the centre, 

 and about 2 feet w^ide. Next they scrape up leaves, bits of 

 bark, twigs, and other vegetation that may be lying about, 

 and put enough on, not only to fill the depression, but 

 to make a small mound of it, about 8 inches or more above 

 the level of the surrounding ground. The}^ then form 

 a hollow in the centre of the vegetation about 1 foot 

 wide and 6 inches or more deep, this being the egg- 

 chamber ; after which they scrape sand all round the nest 

 and leave it until rain comes and well wets the vegetation. 

 The sand is then spread well over the mound to a depth of 

 about 6 inches ; and after a few days, when the vegetation has 

 heated, the mound is ready for eggs. The nest is generally 

 made made in July or August, and the first eggs are laid 

 towards the end of September, but the absence of the 

 necessary rain sometimes makes it later. Both birds assist in 



