232 WHITI-:. Most lixtcnskc Onntlwloi/ual Tour ["^isffan" 



or White-faced Herons and Whistling Eagles, and a W eelMll 

 (Smicrornis, sp. ?). Leaving camp early we had dinicully in 

 finding a crossing. At 50 miles we entered a well-grassed flat, 

 with bean trees. We passed oxer a very rough piece of coun- 

 try, and at 74 miles made Monmoona Creek. Xankeen Kestrels 

 were very numerous here. We followed the creek dow n for a 

 long way, and then made out over the treeless plain. .Several 

 waterholes were seen in low depressions or "gilgies," and liere 

 Si|uatter-Pigeons {Ccophaps scripta) were met with in great 

 numbers. 



They kept down in the long gras> during the greater 

 part of the day, but towards evening rose and congregated in 

 great flocks of several hundreds, and flew round and round the 

 waterholes. After drinking, they flew round for a while and 

 droj^ped in pairs or ones into the grass almost in the darkness. 



yVlthough there • were many hundreds of fully-lledged 

 young, odd pairs were still breeding. Some of my compani(;ns 

 saw a pair doing the broken-wing trick, and several specimens 

 taken by me showed unmistakable signs of breeding. The writer 

 saw one pair of Chestnut-(|uilled Rock-Pigeons (Fetropliassa 

 rufipennis) on a rocky ridge, the only time these birds were seen. 

 Bustards were very plentiful on these vast prairies of rolling 

 grass, and there were numbers of Quail. I secured specimens 

 of a light form of Bush-T^ark ( Mirafra) , with lai^ge bill, which 

 I am not able yet to place. The night of the 18th was cold 

 (44 deg. P.). We moved off next morning early, and during 

 the day saw many Brown Song-Larks. I secured a very small 

 Boobook Owl of very light coloration from the long grass, which 

 appears to be a very distinct type. We were out on vast plains 

 — not a slirub, let alone a tree, in sight; and the ground oxer 

 which xve were traxelling was fearfully rough. Hunted for .some 

 time for a crossing over the lately flooded "Broad" — a deej) and 

 wide depression in the plain. Having reached the far side, xve 

 xvere out on to the bumpy i)lain again amongst ttie long grass. 



We noxv struck rising ground, in j)laces all the world like 

 islands in a sea of grass. On these islands, or i)ieces of ele\ated 

 ground (xvhich are islands in reality in wet time, iov the grass 

 land would be soft and boggy all round), low scrub was growing, 

 a stunted round F)luc4eafed Gum, Bloodwood, a bright yellow 

 flowering Cassia, and other shrubs. .V I'.rown Hawk xvas seen, 

 but he was of the dark variety. The .\ustralian Pratincoles 

 (Stiltia isabclla) xvere very numerous, and were seen in dozens 

 upon any bare i)iece of ground. We bum])ed through the grass 

 over rough ground for many miles, and then reached higher 

 ground and better going, soon to meet rough ground again. 



On the evening of the 21st we went into camp on a 

 "gilgie" ; there was very little muddy xvatcr. and no xvood. We 

 boiled the billy with dry mallow stems. The night xva> cold 

 (44 deg. P.). with a strong S.K. wind blowing. Xcxt morning 



