^''''ig^"-] THOMSON, Haunt of the Butcher Bird. 139 



least, after my experience with the second ])air at their nest, 

 though the wicked, beady, black eye and hooked bill might have 

 given me a suggestion of the true nature of the bird. 



It was not until I became intimately acquainted with this ]>ar- 

 ticular pair of Butcher Birds, that I realised, and began to a])pre- 

 ciate, the wonder of some of the notes of this bird. Admittedly, 

 many of its notes are unmusical, nay, even harsh, but it has some 

 of the fullest and richest notes, and the most glorious piping song 

 I have heard from any bird. I now believe the song of the 

 Butcher Bird at its best to be the finest song of any Australian 

 bird which I know. To be fully ap})reciated, it must be heard in 

 the deepest silence of the bush, and be uttered by both birds in 

 tmison. 



Like many birds, I believe that the Butcher Bird sings its 

 purest and best in moments of intense emotion, not only of hap- 

 piness, but also of pain or sorrow. Certainly I have never been 

 more moved by the song of any creature than when both birds 

 burst into song in chorus, their heads held high, their bodies, 

 down to the tips of their wings and tails, aquiver with the in- 

 tensity of the song. Would that others could have heard it too; 

 there would be more true bird-lovers amongst us ! 



On October 8th I visited the nest again, and the birds became 

 a little less shy. Next morning I went early to the nest and 

 placed the camera in position, lashing it to the staging. Owing 

 to the tall, thin nature of the saplings to which the staging was 

 lashed, the whole structure swayed when the wind blew, in regu- 

 lar motion, like the roll of a ship. I used a long ladder to reach 

 the staging from the ground. 



The birds daily became more confident, and no longer refused 

 to visit the nest. As usual, I operated the camera without the 

 use of any distance release, and so became the centre of a very 

 lively situation. So much so in fact that I was obliged to put 

 my iiead under the focussing cloth for protection. Through 

 the trees they would come, with their direct flight, like winged 

 arrows, shooting past my head and snapping their bills viciously. 

 I was always thankful that my eyes were not in their tracks. 



At first, the female alone fed the nestlings; the male merely 

 flying around, uttering his harsh alarm notes and attacking me 

 from time to time. Later, however, he too assisted in the feed- 

 ing operations. Though both birds fed the young, apparently 

 the female alone brooded. On one occasion, whilst the female 

 was brooding, the male arrived with a dainty morsel. The 

 female, however, did not offer to move, but opened her own 

 beak, whereupon the dutiful male fed her. Unfortunately, the 

 light was too poor for photogra])hy. During the day heavy rain 

 and hail fell. As the female returned to the nest to shelter the 

 young, I was able to obtain a photograph of her, after a shower. 



