^°IoM^] DovK, Return of Migran's mul Visi/ors. 2^7 



during tlio wintiT and spring. One, which resides in some 1)hie 

 gums passetl by mo every day, salutes one with " Come up, 

 oh do ! Come up, oh do ! Kai, kai, kai ! " the latter phrasing 

 reminding us of the Maoris' call to food — " Haeremai, kai, kai." 

 Another of the birds, in a friend's garden, calls out frequently, 

 " Cycles go quick, quick, quick ! " There is also a single guttural 

 note, " Kwok," much like the well-known sound made by the 

 Yellow Wattle-Bird {A . inaitris) ; this is varied by " Kok, kok, kwee, 

 kwee, kwee," and occasionally l)y a much softer " Too-tee, too-tee, 

 too-tee," apparently a courting note. There is infinite variety 

 of tone, and some of the phrases, such as the first and second cited 

 above, appear to belong to inch vidua Is only. I am in great hopes 

 that some of the Brush Wattle-Birds will nest in the trees about 

 the town, as numbers still remain with us, and are evidently 

 courting ; they are most entertaining visitors, owing to being in 

 constant movement and almost constant voice. Numbers of 

 White-bearded Honey-eaters {Meliornis novce-hoUandice) were with 

 us when the Anellobias arrived, and at first disputed vigorously 

 the right of possession with the larger birds ; but after a great deal 

 of scolding and chasing the White-beards were eventually routed, 

 and have betaken themselves to " fresh woods and pastures 

 new." 



While spending a few days at Table Cape, North-West Tasmania, 

 in the early summer (November) of last year, I noticed a small 

 party of half a dozen of the Little Cuckoo-Shrike {Graucalus 

 mentalis) feeding in the gums which border the River Inglis. 

 They were flying from tree to tree at no great height, searching 

 the foliage for insects. The morning was beautifully fine and 

 sunny, with scarcely any breeze, and remained so during my 

 stay. The trees in which the birds were observed were of the 

 white or "manna" species {Eucalyptus viminalis). Numbers of 

 our ordinary Cuckoo-Shrike (G. parvirostris) frequent the Table 

 Cape district, but this was the only lot of the smaller species which 

 I saw, and on the single occasion only. 



Spine-tailed Swifts have been seen once only this season in 

 the Devonport district, on 2nd January this year, when, at 

 7.30 p.m., a considerable number passed over at varying heights 

 from N.W. towards S.E., or inland. There had been an electrical 

 disturbance, with heavy rain, on the previous evening. 



Native Birds in Captivity. 



By Edith M. Jones, Harris Park. 



Ix the .\pril issue of The Emu you mention a case occurring in 

 the Melbourne Zoological Gardens of a Black Duck and a Muscovy 

 Duck producing hybrid offspring. At UmbercoUie station, 7 miles 

 out of Goondiwindi fQld.), there was a deep hole of water just in 

 front of the house, surrounded by sedges and tall grasses, where 



